Blitzing the QB Run-Game with 2-High Safeties

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The full text of “Blitzing the QB Run-Game with 2-High Safeties” by Patrick Moynahan, from the Vol 3 — Winter 2018 issue.

By Patrick Moynahan, Linebackers Coach Kenyon College W e have struggled to defend the vertical passing game with traditional 3-deep 3-under coverages, and so we tweaked the secondary to be a 4-deep, 2-under structure to better match both quick game and vertical passing concepts. In this article I will detail how we structure our front to defend the common runs we face, and our coverage rules to defend the most common RPO’s and passing concepts.

The Inferno Blitz Our Inferno blitz is a choice pressure dictated on which side the tailback aligns. If the tailback is strong, we will run our “Smoke” blitz, whereas if he is weak we will run our “Burn” blitz. Smoke signifies the Sam and Mike will be the rushers, Burn the Dime and Will. The Mike LB will alert the DL their alignment and movement with a Gee/Haw call. Gee means pressure from the left, Haw pressure from the right.

The blitz, regardless of direction, begins with all 4 LB’s on the line of scrimmage so as to disguise our direction. In the direction of the blitz the DL will align 4i, shade, 5. The coverage LB’s (D and W in Smoke) will drop when the QB begins his cadence, or if he has a particular pre-snap tell (squatting in his stance, lifting his leg, bringing his hands close to his face mask, etc).

The ILB will align over the ball at 5 yards, and the outside backer will align “Apex” – ½ way between the tackle and the nearest eligible receiver. Although the front is balanced a knowledgeable OL will know where the blitz is com - ing based on where the 4i and 5 aligns. We struc - ture the front this way for two reasons: 1. It allows the long pinching 4i to cover less ground and less likely to be cutoff by the offensive guard. 2.

A 5 At Kenyon College we try to counteract our light, but quick, front seven against larger offensive linemen by blitzing to the side of the back. Our favorite concept the past few seasons has been what we call “Inferno” – an overload blitz that begins with a balanced front with all seven DL and LB’s on the line of scrimmage. Blitzing the QB Run-Game with 2-High Safeties

5 technique opposite the back allows us to better defend power read. When the back is weak, we transition to the “Burn” pressure that is mirrored, and there the corresponding players merely swap responsibilities. Blitz Paths When we teach any type of pressure we spend the bulk of our time emphasizing the proper reads and steps for the blitz - ing players so we can properly fit the runs we’ll see that week and have a balanced rush against the pass that harasses, but also contains the QB.

In this next section I’ll outline the points of emphasis for the three players involved in the inferno pres - sure: the 4i (long pinch), C crash (M/D), and D crash (S/W). 4i: The most important objective for the 4i is to cross the guard’s face, and end up in the A gap. We teach a two step movement: first a flat 12in. first step to get the 4i even w/the OG, followed by second step which is vertical at a 45 deg. angle so as to cross the OG’s face and pen - etrate the A-gap.

The second step should be combined with a rip. Simultaneous with his movements, the 4i will read the center. If the center zones away from him, he needs to ensure that he rips across the face of the guard and get to the inside hip of the center: If the center zones to him, the 4i will shorten his second step and focus on getting vertical so the center cannot reach him: Against the pass, the 4i will work opposite the slide.

If the center slides to him he will cross his face, whereas if center slides away he will continue rushing up field: C Crash: The inside linebacker to the side of the back is the C gap rusher. His primary re - sponsibility is the tailback against zone read, and we emphasize having as tight a path off the offensive tackle as possible. Our main coaching point is making sure he points his inside toe at the inside knee of the tailback and rolls off his front foot at the snap.

Similar to the 4i, the C-crash will read the tackle while on his blitz path. If the tackle zones away the ILB will bend and tackle the back:

If the tackle zones to him, the C crash will rip underneath and accelerate up field into the B gap: Against the pass the C-crash will work opposite the slide, shortening the edge for the outside linebacker. If the tackle slides away, he will attack the inside shoulder of the back. If the tackle slides to, he will rip underneath and attack the guard: D-Crash: The outside backer to the side of the tailback is the D gap rusher. He is the force player against the run, and must keep the QB in the pocket against the pass.

We tell him he is a “train on the tracks” to emphasize that his path is direct and explosive. Point your toe and go! Against zone read the D-crash is responsible for the QB. His rush should ensure the ball if given. If the QB does keep the football, the D-crash needs to tackle him, or force him back inside should he miss the tackle:

Versus the run to him he attacks the upfield shoulder of the tailback and forces the ball back inside: Against the pass, it’s imperative the D-Crash stays on the upfield shoulder of the QB. If the line slides away from the blitz, the back is left to block either the block C or D-crash. If the line slides to the blitz the D-Crash is left 1 on 1 with the offensive tackle: Run Fits The two primary runs we see against one-back offens - es are the zone and power read.

We think that the In - ferno blitz is very effective in terms of fitting both runs, but also encouraging the offense to check to a quick throw/screen at the line of scrimmage. Against zone read the C and D crash have clearly de - fined roles. The D-crash is responsible for the QB, the C-crash is responsible for the tailback. After the coverage LBs have bailed to their respective alignments the inside backer (in this illustration the Dime) works from A gap to B gap1.

If the nose is reached or the 4i is cut off, then he exists as an insurance policy. The outside linebacker away from the blitz (in this illustration the Will) reads the tackle. When the tackle blocks out, the Will inserts into the B gap.

Against power read the 5-technique opposite the back is taught to “Fire” at the QB vs. an inside re - lease from the tackle. His aiming point is the inside shoulder of the QB, forcing a “give” read. The Will, when he sees the inside release, will replace the 5 technique as the force player, and handle the tailback sweep. Once the Dime reads the pull, he will pursue inside out from QB to sweep. To the side of the blitz, the Mike will look to get in the hip pocket of the guard when the tackle hinges to him.

Then the 4i is free to cross the face of the center. Spy Match Coverage As previously stated we encountered issues with covering vertical route combinations with traditional 3-Deep, 3-Under zone coverages. To counteract these problems, we now play variations of our read quarters coverage behind most of our zone pressures. We’ll tag these coverages with the term “Spy Match” or “Spy Special.” Spy alerts the secondary that the front is blitzing and therefore there is one less underneath defender.

The diagram above illustrates our base coverage distribution vs a 2 x 2 spread set. “Silver” alerts that both corner and safety are in combination coverage on the #2 and #1 receivers. Each corner aligns 1x7 inside #1, but reads #2 pre-snap. Any outside route from #2 he will jump. If #2 runs an under or slant he will play #1 man to man. If #2 is vertical, the corner will look to match #1 on any route past 7 yards. The safeties will align 1x12 inside #2, and also read #2 pre-snap.

Any outside release from #2, he will push over top of #1. If #2 runs an under, the safety will rob off the QB; against a slant the safety will look for the sluggo before breaking on the slant. Any vertical release from #2 the safety will match down the field2. Both underneath players we will assign the “Clear” responsibility. Clear is a combination of curl and curl/flat assignments. They will drop to the curl, and reroute any vertical release from #2.

They will expand to the flat based on two scenarios – a flare from the tailback, or a “Hitch” call from the corner. Any mesh combination will be passed off between the two underneath players. The following illustrations will demonstrate our coverage distributions against common routes we see:

Against an outside route from #2, the corner will take him man to man. The safety will then push overtop to play #1. Against bubble, the safety will defend the bubble & go. If #1 stems inside, the safety will flatten his peddle. He can be late to the dig because he has underneath help from the clear player. When #2 breaks inside – be it on a slant or an under – the corner will then play #1 man to man. The safety will be slow against an inside route from #2. If it is a slant, he will sit on the sluggo.

If #2 runs an under he has the freedom to rob off where the QB’s vision. If the QB looks his way, he’ll double #1, if the QB looks away he will double the first inside threat.

Both these scenarios involve the Clear player expanding to the flat. When the corner makes a “Hitch” call against the Smash route the Clear player will expand underneath the hitch, so both DB’s can cover the corner route. Against a flare from the tailback the clear player will again expand to the flat so he’s not out leveraged to the perimeter. Against trips we will stay in our match coverage check to trips, but again maintaining two underneath defenders.

We’ll tag this adjustment “Spy Special,” again to alert the secondary that we are pressuring.

To the trips side we will play an extension of our read quarters rules. The field corner will align 1x7 inside #1 and read from #3 to #1. If #3 runs an under, he will squeeze #1. If #3 releases outside or vertical, he’ll match #1 on any route past 7 yds. The $ will align five yards off #2 in a side run. He will turn his back to the sideline and shuffle vertically, reading from #3 to #2. He is responsible for matching #2 vertically, and any outside route from 2 or 3.

Should #2 release inside, the $ will expand underneath #1. Depending on the matchup the FS will align anywhere from 9 to 12 yards inside #3. His read is from #3 to #2. If #3 is vertical, he will match #3. If #3 releases outside or under he’ll look to match from #2 to #1. Backside the corner is responsible for #1 unless he runs an under. Underneath we will still have two underneath defenders, but instead of two Clear players, we’ll have a hook player to the trips side, and a curl/flat player opposite the trips.

The hook player is responsible for the first underneath threat. In his drop he will progress from the pre-snap #3 to the post snap #3. His drop will be no deeper than 8 yards and initially flat to the hip of #3. The backside C/F player will only expand to the flat if the back flares, or if the QB looks backside. In the subsequent illustrations I will illustrate the coverage distributions for the common trips routes we see. Against the Stick route, with #2 releasing outside the $ will jump #2.

The Sam, as the hook player in this illustration, plays #3 as soon as he stops at 5 yards. If the Sam is blitzing, the Dime LB is responsible for #3. Depending on the game plan we can tell the FS to be aggressive to the hitch to help the Dime. When #3 immediately releases outside, the $ will drive to him. The corner, also reading 3, will let #1 go because he has not crossed the 7-yard threshold. Instead he’ll push for the nearest vertical threat. When #3 bubbles, the FS will then push to match #2.

The hook player progresses from 3, to 2, and settles on the spot route from #1.

This route we see frequently in the red zone we call ‘Chicago.’ This route puts the most pressure on the $ and hook player. As #3 runs vertical, the $ will look to match #2. When #2 breaks inside, he’ll let him go to the hook player. He’ll then transition help on the #1 receiver. It’s imperative the corner give an “In” call to the $. Similar to Spot, the corner looks to match #1 when #3 goes vertical. When #1 makes his break, the corner will again progress to the nearest vertical threat.

The hook player will let #3 release vertical, and progress to #2. He must be careful to not spend too much time with #3 so as to be in position to drive on #2. There are a myriad of ways to rush 5 defenders to defend the QB run and cover the myriad of pass and RPO combi - nations an offense can run. Our Inferno package combined with 2-deep match coverage has proven to be effective for us, but can be tweaked and redefined to fit many defensive systems.

This pressure concept can be run with traditional firezone coverages, or changing the pressure but maintaining 2-high coverage structures. Patrick Moynahan is currently a Defensive Graduate Assistant at Stanford. He was previously the Linebackers Coach at Kenyon College. A graduate of Davidson College, Moynahan holds the record for single season tackling leader at Davidson.