The four hands on Dexter Lawrence: how double teams work

Where a nose tackle stands

Coaches describe defensive line alignments with a numbering system. As PFF's Brett Whitefield explained it, the count starts head-up over the center and works outward, with even numbers meaning directly across from a blocker and odd numbers meaning shaded to his outside shoulder.

The nose tackle is the man in the middle of that chart. Wikipedia's entry on the position calls it "the most physically demanding position in gridiron football," with the player "frequently taking on the center and at least one if not both of the guards." The classic job description is to "hold the point of attack and force double teams by the guard and center."

The arithmetic of a double team

An offense has five linemen. That never changes. If two of them are busy with one defender, somebody else on the defense is facing one fewer blocker than he would otherwise, or none at all. A linebacker runs through a cleaner lane. An edge rusher gets a single block instead of a chip. The tackle who created that did not touch the ball carrier, and his name does not appear on the play.

That is why analysts treat double teams as a sign of respect. When ESPN's Brian Burke explained the network's pass-rush tracking in 2018, he noted that the system uses player-tracking data to identify who blocks whom, including double teams, and he pointed to Aaron Donald as an interior lineman whose production looked even better once you knew how often he drew two blockers.

What Lawrence's number measures

Here is the figure that made Lawrence so expensive. Per NFL Research, cited by NFL.com at the time of his trade, he was double-teamed on 53.2% of his pass rushes from 2021 onward, the highest rate in the league among players with at least 750 snaps. That came to 1,103 double teams over five seasons. No one else reached a thousand.

A caution before you quote it at a friend. I could not find NFL Research's full method for tagging a double team, and different trackers draw that line differently, so the precise percentage belongs to that source. The broad picture matches what opposing coaches say. Bears head coach Ben Johnson, whose team held joint practices with Cincinnati this summer, called him "a menace" in comments quoted by ESPN.

The part nobody charts

The funniest evidence comes from his own teammates. Running back Samaje Perine told ESPN that most very big players "have a little give because they're a little bit fluffy-ish." He was talking about Lawrence, and he meant it as a compliment. Chase Brown said being caught by him felt like being "grabbed by a monster."

Lawrence describes the work more gently. "I call it almost like making music," he told Sports Illustrated in September. "Like it's just a flow." It is a lovely way to describe absorbing two large men on every snap so that someone else gets the glory. We think it is also the most accurate description in this whole story.

For the business side, including what Cincinnati gave up to get that flow, see our look at why the Bengals traded the No. 10 pick. The short version belongs here, though. A double team never shows up in the nose tackle's box score. It shows up in someone else's.