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Deception

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BoiseBronco (how are you folks doing, BBronco?) commented about the upcoming Broncos vs Huskies game that Chris Petersen "WILL have a few trick plays up his sleeve to pull off on the Broncos." I would amend that to insert "ATTEMPT" to pull off on the Broncos. Perhaps it will be Merlin meets Gandalf, but I think that the Broncos will be more comfortable with on-field subterfuge and deception--it's in our DNA. Petersen may try to pull something out of his hat, but, in this case, his effort will prove the theorem that you literally can't teach an old dog new tricks. And this will be one of the advantages of our having a battle-tested defense this season. Rookies make mistakes, and I don't anticipate many from our veterans.

I've been reading a book about a little-known effort by the United States in World War II which was conducted by the "Special Troops." The book is titled "Secret Soldiers--The Story of World War II's Heroic Army of Deception." As the author (Philip Gerard) points out, especially in his fourth chapter, "Artists of Razzle-Dazzle," getting your opponent to bite on your misdirection and plausible-but-false intention is an ancient and powerful weapon. When I read that chapter, I couldn't avoid thinking about our Broncos and the tactics they employ to convince the opponent to "hit 'em where they ain't."

Deception is psychological in nature, and exploits a kernel of truth in the opponent's mind to persuade him to logically deduce a plan of action. The idea is that you use his own brain, with facts he knows to be true and with his corroborative evidence (such as earlier plays, specific skill players on the field, film study, etc.) and make him work to figure out what action to take. Too bad that it will be a fruitless action, since his anticipated outcome will be in the wrong place at the wrong time. By the time he realizes that he's been "punk'd," it will be too late. Hook-and-lateral. Statue of Liberty. Fullback pass. Punter pass. The Broncos' history is rife with successful examples. But they aren't "trick" plays, they are superbly orchestrated deceptions.

One type of deception is to give the opponent so many choices that he is paralyzed about how, where, and when to respond. Complicated offensive shifts and motions are examples of this type. "The idea is to give your target a kaleidoscope to play with, and then let him use it as a looking glass." The other type of deception is misdirection--"The strategy of misdirection is clear: to make the enemy very certain, very determined, and completely wrong." It involves injecting false truths into the opponent's decision-making process. Any time you can convince the opponent, through his own deduction process, that he knows what you're going to do next, and then you pull off a sleight-of-hand on the other side of the field, you have a good chance of success. The antithesis to this is "run it off-tackle left, run it off-tackle right, run it up the middle, punt" that we saw in the last days of Coach Pete.

"A deception operation is essentially a con game, which always plays most effectively when the target has to work a little to be fooled," Gerard writes. "Like any good lie, a deception contains as much truth as possible."

Good deception is cerebral, and requires good effort. (Maybe that's why the "smash-mouth" opponents who decry the Broncos' deceptive plays as "tricks" can't employ their own--it takes brains to pull it off.) A successful magician cannot expect to fool his audience without constant practice, and I think this is where the Broncos have an edge. (I'd even volunteer my services as an acting coach, if Hars were to invite me.) Discipline is paramount. And knowing when and where to pull off a deceptive effort "requires a gambler's eye for the main chance," according to Gerard.

If the Bronco coaching staff were ever to read this post, I'd recommend that they check out this specific chapter ("Artists of Razzle-Dazzle") in the book--the techniques saved countless thousands of Allied lives during the European campaign. In a way, deception is similar to the martial arts, in that it uses the enemy's strength against him. Good read.

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