What DT Phidarian Mathis brings to the Washington Commanders
Taking a closer look at the skill set of the Commanders second-round pick
The Washington Commanders drafted Alabama defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis in the second round of the draft. The pick was met with some controversy as some felt the Commanders reached for a player that wouldn’t be a starter when they could have potentially landed a player with a chance to have a bigger impact. It was also a need created by poor management, given the team allowed free agent Tim Settle to leave in free agency and cut Matt Ioannidis for cap purposes, leaving the team with no depth behind starters Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne.
Regardless of if Mathis was a reach or the best player available, he will still have a key role to play as the primary back up defensive tackle. The real strength in a defensive line is in its rotation. Being able to rotate defensive tackles in and out to keep everyone fresh is critical, especially if the opposing team puts together a long drive or if the offense keeps going three-and-out. Matt Ioannidis was the primary back up defensive tackle last year and played 50% of the snaps, so Mathis will see the field regularly. But what does he bring to the Commanders? Let’s take a closer look.
The first thing that stands out with the 6-foot-4, 310 pound Mathis is the same thing that stands out with all Alabama defensive lineman. As a run defender, he’s incredibly stout and technically very sound. Alabama has a long history now of coaching up defensive lineman with excellent technique to defend the run. Jonathan Allen came out with great technique, Daron Payne did too. Mathis is no different and it’s apparent the moment you start watching him.
This play is almost a textbook example of how Alabama teaches defensive lineman to play the run. LSU calls an inside run with Mathis aligned head up over the right guard in what’s known as a 2 technique alignment. Off the snap, the right guard steps across Mathis to try and get inside and cut him off. However, Mathis manages to step with him while staying low and getting his arms on the chest of the blocker. From there, he has all the leverage to control the block. Mathis extends his arms to stand up the guard and peeks into the backfield to locate the running back. He then anticipates the cut and switches from two hands on the guard to one as he tosses the guard inside to shed the block. He gets off the block as the back arrives and swiftly swallows him up for a minimal gain.
That technique of staying low off the snap, getting hands inside, using full extension of the arms to stack up the blocker and get a look at the back before shedding the block and making the tackle is outstanding and a trademark of all Alabama defensive lineman. You can see that technique repeat itself over and over and over in every game Mathis played. He’s helped too by the fact he has exceptionally long arms. His arm length measurement is listed at nearly 35 inches, which is a huge advantage as most interior lineman have 33-inch arms or shorter. This means when he extends those arms out fully, the blocker often can’t reach him to do anything about it.
Another trademark of Alabama lineman is the ability to play up and down the line. We saw him align head up over the guard on the previous play, but he can play all across the front and still be effective.
Here, Mathis aligns head up over the center as a traditional 3-4 nose tackle. He’s a little bit slow off the snap again, but we can see the technique play out exactly the same as it did on the previous play. He stays low off the snap, gets his hands on the chest of the center, extends those arms fully to stack up the center and gain full control of the block. With the center stacked up, Mathis has a two-way go, meaning he can work either side of the block depending on what the back does. He waits for the back to commit to a path and then quickly peels off the block to assist on the tackle.
The flexibility to play up and down the line is valuable to Washington, who typically uses a four-man front but did use a five-man front at times last year too. Payne was the player to line up at nose tackle in that front most often, but Mathis could easily slot in there and allow Payne to slide to a different alignment, or Mathis himself could play the other alignment. If they do opt you use different fronts, Mathis can also handle two-gap responsibilities as seen above, or take on double teams and keep his linebackers clean.
On this play against Georgia, Mathis aligns on the inside shoulder of the right guard. The guard works in combination with the center to double Mathis as they try to drive him back so the center can peel off and pick up the linebacker behind him. However, Mathis does a great job using a knee drop technique where he drops down on to one knee to help him withstand the power from the double team. This prevents the blockers from driving him back and delays the center from being able to climb up to the linebacker. That in turn allows the linebacker to roam freely and find the running back to make the tackle.
One area Mathis can struggle with as a run defender is working laterally on zone runs. He’s not the quickest or most agile defensive lineman and he’s often a beat slow off the snap. Combine those two things and Mathis can occasionally get reached and cut off on some zone runs.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Bullock's Film Room to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.