The Power Sweep had long been the Marquis running play for the 49ers, especially since Bill Walsh was the Head Coach. It had allowed the 49er staff to set up numerous play action possibilities. The Power Sweep has also long been my personal favorite as well. Ever since I began coaching offense, it has been an effective play for us.

In the West Coast Offense, the Sweep play is called “18/19 Wide”. It carries the same rules and responsibilities since it was used by Vince Lombardi and the, then, World Champion Green Bay Packers. Walsh believed that he could gain good match-ups on the corner with the sweep, and that it allowed him to dictate some mismatches against some Nickel and Dime defenses that may have been on the field at the time.

The Sweep basically is designed to get a Back with good vision on the edge with two quick Offensive linemen in front of him, and to seal the rest of the defense inside. You may have heard Chris Berman of ESPN playfully mocking Lombardi’s explanation of the play with his “Seal here, and a seal here. And we run the ball …through the alley”.

I benefited greatly from this scheme by the way it was taught to me. I, in turn, want to portray it the same way it was taught to me. Because, I do not want to lose anything in the translation. So, hop on and lets get acquainted with the Power Sweep that never seemed to get old. One of the things that Lombardi and Walsh both liked about this play, was the ability of the play to be executed against any defense, even or odd. And this play was run against virtually every defense imaginable.

The one who makes the decision as to how it is blocked is usually made by the Center. He will make the appropriate call when he examines the defense by checking as to its alignment. If the defense is set up in a 3-4 alignment, he will make an “Odd: call, which is also appropriate versus a “Under” or “Frisco” defense in our terminology. If the defense has aligned in a “Over” defense, or “Ram” defense in our terminology, he will make an “Over” call, and the quarterback will have the option to call an audible, or go with the original call. The “Crowd” call will be explained later.

This article is the first in a series of articles on Offensive Football by John Anderson, author of West Coast Offense at the Youth Level, available for purchase here at the CompuSports Media Exchange.

Click here for a PDF version of the 18/19 Wide (The “Lombardi Power Sweep”) article in its entirety.