Pass Coverage

The base cover is a Pattern Read with three distinct but complementary options. The secondary will make distinct calls on each side, based on what the offensive alignment is to that side. In this defense, safeties make the coverage calls, and the corners echo that call so that they are on the same page. The saying goes: The safety is right, even if he is wrong. If the corner knows the safety should have made a different call by rule, he still echoes and sticks with the safetys call so that they are both playing the same technique. Its better for the players to be wrong and playing the same technique, than for one to be right and to be playing two different techniques. Essentially, this means that, in this defense, you are able to play two distinct coverages on opposite halves of the field, while maintaining a complementary and uniform scheme that accounts for all receivers at all times. This is the beauty of the pattern read.

There are a few basic rules that determine your coverage calls. First of all, if your corners can press, you can let them. Most coaches want them to feel comfortable in doing it, and will work a lot on it, so it is available to be called at times, and there be times that the corners will be allowed to decide (the technique will be covered later in the defensive back play section). That being said, there are three basic calls out of the base coverage: 1. Bracketed man cover, 2. Straight man to man cover zero, 3. Cover 2 pattern read.

In this scheme, Pattern Read actually begins pre-snap. There are a series of calls and techniques that you will want your players to make based on the formation and alignment of the offense. While these matchups work for most players in this system, you may want to tweak or change the calls to match your personnel and system. There are certainly advantageous match

ups for aligning this way, and playing these techniques to specific formations. The first call that is made out of the base is to play a Pattern Read cover 2.

Cover 2

One of the possible coverage calls is a pattern read cover 2. In this scheme, pattern read begins before the snap. The safeties make distinct calls based on what formation the offense comes out in for each individual play. In this case, there are particular formations that will cause a check to get into this particular coverage. Since this is a pattern read coverage, the pattern reading during the play also changes the conventional rules of cover 2 somewhat.

You will want to play cover 2 on a half of the field if the number one receiver has his hand down (a tight end). This is a cover two shell, making the corner our Primary Hammer and our safety a Secondary Hammer. In this cover, the Safety will man up on any vertical from the tight end. This can mean anything from a vertical, corner, post corner, post, dig, or any kind of pump or nod move. In other words, the Safety is in man cover on the tight end on anything but a quick out. If he gets a quick out from the tight end, something is coming on the second level. That could be a back side crosser, a shoot from the backfield, etc. The safety will play that next level threat. The corners job in this cover is to push the fade until a flat threat appears. If a flat threat never appears, he keeps pushing the fade. In other words, you teach the corners that the flat extends forever if your corner has no one in front of him.

Pattern Read Cover 2

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Diagram 4-1

In Pattern Read cover 2, the corner, being the Primary Hammer, will trigger immediately on run toward him, based on his run read on the end man on the line of scrimmage (EMLOS). The safety must trigger more slowly, playing tight end delay before he is up in run support.

In this way, you can see that the pattern read in this cover leaves you in the best possible situation versus the run and the pass. It also allows you to react pre-snap, as well as during the play to ensure that you are in the best possible situation to stop the offensive play. Run support is phenomenal to this side, with the primary hammer triggering on his run read immediately, and the secondary hammer almost always as the unblocked player filling in the alley later. This is the first example of how this coverage actually layers the run support naturally, absed on their set of reads and reactions. Run support gets even better if a team goes double tite with three backs in a goal line situation, because you end up with all eleven defenders in the box, making it pretty tough sledding to run the football consistently. 3

Bracketed Cover

If you have two receivers to one side, the corner and safety will play a bracketed man to man coverage (diagram 4-2). In this cover, the corner is man against the #1 receiver, while the safety is man against the #2 receiver. If the #2 receiver runs a quick out, the safety makes an out call and the corner jumps the flat route, while the safety switches to cover the #1 receivers route. To be certain, this cover takes some practice, but it is invaluable. This technique needs to be taught in a step by step process, teaching the footwork and progression of the eyes in each possible scenario. Start with slant out combinations, and rep that, move to a vertical out combination, and rep that. You want to teach all throughout the process, building up confidence in the players, so that when they go full speed, they simply react to what they have been taught, and to what they have practiced.

Bracketed Cover

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Diagram 4-2

If there is no quick out from #2, then the corner and safety simply play man to man coverage down the field. How you define the quick out is up to you and your level of confidence in your players. Some programs allow out calls up to eight yards. The simplest method of teaching is to use the right now rule. If #2 is going out right now (within his first three steps) then make the out call. In this way, the out call is now or never. Treat it the way option guys treat the QBs dive read. The option coaches say you are never wrong to give, and in this cover, tell the safety that he is never wrong to keep his man. In this way, you give your safeties the default safe call. As they become more comfortable, the players will make more out calls, resulting in big plays for your defense.

You want to call this cover when there are two receivers split out, as in a slot or a spread set. This allows for the best match up available to stop the spread attack. If, however, the two receivers to the side are not in close proximity, you do not want to call this cover. For example, out of a pro set, the Tight end and the #1 receiver can be 15 yards from each other, in this case, you do not want to make a Bracket call, because it will be next to impossible for your safety to get out to #1. In this instance, you would rather play cover zero man.

Man Cover

In Man, you are playing straight cover zero, with no possibility of switching or bracketing. You will want to call this coverage versus a two receiver side, where there is a great distance between the number one and number two receivers. For example, in a Pro set, or if the #2 receiver is tight in the formation, there is a lot of space between the two receivers.. Basically, any time that the safety doesnt feel he will be able to get over to #1, he Mans the call. We will also call Man back side to a trips formation. Man also allows you the 5

flexibility to use your base coverage to trips, quads, or any other exotic formation an opponent comes out in. Basically, it cannot be bad to call Man. If something confuses the safety, you simply tell him to call Man and go play football.

Man Cover 0

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Diagram 4-3 6

Man Cover 0

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Diagram 4-4

Other Combinations:

Trips

You can keep this coverage versus trips if you want to, allowing the Corner and Strong safety to play Bracketed Man on #1 and #2, and bring the free over to play Man on #3. This would also make the back side corner Man on #1 weak.

Free Over to Trips

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Diagram 4-5

Empty

You can use the same principle front side out of empty, with Corner and Strong Safety playing Bracketed Man on the #1 and #2 receivers front side, with Sam taking #3 in Man coverage. On the weak side, you can also play Bracketed Man with the Free and Corner on the #1 and #2 receivers weak.

Empty Adjustments

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Diagram 4-6

Quads

Against this set, you can still Bracketed Man the front 2 if you want to, while bringing the Strong safety over to play Man against the #3 receiver, and Sam playing Man against the #4 receiver, and the back side corner in Man against the #1 weak.

Quads Adjustments

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Diagram 4-7

Heavy Sets

Any time that a team makes a receiver ineligible by alignment, call him dead, but still line up as if he were live. This usually means that someone unexpected is now eligible back side, and a linebacker will hear a dead call and look for that player. In high school, players cannot report eligible with lineman numbers, so teach the linebackers to look for that extra player, and if he is ineligible by number, call him dead as well and forget about accounting for him in the pass game. One thing that is good to do out of these sets is to make sure you leave a fast player (our back side corner) for reverse, boot, or screens. So if the #1 receiver weak is off of the line of scrimmage in a heavy set, do not chase him across. Instead, call bump and allow the defender guarding the dead player to take him in man.

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Heavy Adjustments

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Diagram 4-8

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