Whatever frustrations or flaws that can be identified in the Ducks, there’s one thing in particular that they HAVE gotten absolutely perfect: The way they perform in critical drives and critical moments.
That’s not an official stat or something from the analytics database. But if you look back at their games, every time there’s been a drive where they’d needed points to maintain or take control of game, they’ve done exactly that.
It’s almost as if Dan Lanning and the coaches manufacture a little bit of pressure to develop resilience and confidence in critical situations, but I think more it’s just worked out that way. Every team practices situational football during the week, third down, Red Zone, end of the game, needing a drive to get a field goal, going for it on 4th down, surprise call for a field goal with teammates having to do up/downs if the kicker misses, but the Ducks have excelled in those situations in real time, live on TV.
Part of the reason is their quality of preparation. The Ducks Vs Them series shows us week after week how Lanning gives them a narrative, a powerful vision of what the game is going to be like, what it will demand from them, how to control the environment. Those lessons have taken many forms, but they’re always forceful, meaningful and accurate.