Using Creativity to get More from a 4 man Pass Rush

2017 Florida State is in an X backer personnel with a sub secondary on 3rd & 8.

The Rush:

The Ends are contain with the X and Nose executing an interior pass rush twist game.

The Coverage:
Cover 1 with safeties in the hole and post. The sub personnel allows for the defense to match all the speed receivers with DB's. The Mike in this situation is a 7th DB, in this case a big safety body.

The Seminoles built a nice situational pass rush package. The 7 DB's allow the coverage to match-up against the speed Syracuse has on the field. The X backer allows a versatile pass rusher to get involved in the interior pass rush. The stunt is not new but FSU does a good job of utilizing personnel to get the right people on the field doing what they do best and executing the call at high level. 

Changing the Math with Safety Run Pressure & DL Movement

This pressure is from the 2017 UCF defense.

The Rush:
The DL is slanting from a 4i-0-4i alignment away from the edge rushing safety. The box is initially a 6 man box but the blitzing safety changes the math to a 7 man box.

The Coverage:
Cover 1. Although it is possibly an aggressive version of 3 deep 3 under firezone with pressed corners.

Why did it work?

The box picture for the OL pre-snap is a fairly standard 4-2 look with both ILB's in the box.

Play side the OT and OG are fanning out to the Jack and End. Back side the C&OG are zoning to the Will while the back side OT&Y are zoning for the Mike. By the time the Safety rolls down to blitz and the Mike bumps out of the box the OL blocking is declared. The final picture looks more like a 4-3 defense with the Safety & 2 ILB's combined with the slanting DL to space like a 4-3 box. Because of the initial picture the OG is aggressive to the slanting End and quick to travel back inside. The OT sees the blitzing safety and adjusts but the OG is gone leaving the Jack unblocked. 

Even if the zone blocking had stayed intact the play is outnumbered by the defense and the zone would break in a different place.

The 4i on an outside move is a problem for the zone.

Once the back side OT and Y started comboing for the End and Mike the Zone has a challenge. The OT travels back with the End and eventually works to the Mike. In the last diagram shows what if the OL zone blocks the pressure accounting for the blitzer and slanting DL.
OT fanned to the blitzing safety
OG fanned to the Jack 
C/G combo came off to the End & Nose on the slants 
Even if that all happened the zone would still have broken. The zone cannot account for the scraping Will backer when the RB cuts back. The slanting End and Mike do a nice job of building a wall back side to force any cutback into the rush.

Another option would have been for the combo's to remain as originally declared.

The zone is still outnumbered. If the OT & OG travel back with the Jack and End as they slant the Center & Guard combo works to the Nose & scraping will the safety blitzing is unblocked. The two most likely outcomes are the safety makes the play in the backfield or the run cuts into a wall backside. 

Nice run pressure by Coach Chinander and UCF to create a TFL. The usage of the boundary safety in the pressure creates numbers where the offense did not expect them. 

Stacking Linebackers & Changing Support vs. the Flexbone

The Clemson defense is spaced in a 3-4 defense with the ILB's stacked and a 2 high safety shell.

By stacking the ILB's Clemson can get both backers quickly to the side of the option. 

When the LBs are aligned in a traditional 3-4 spacing the back side guard has  a reasonable angle to zone up to the back side ILB. The block by the back side guard slows the pursuit and play side run fit of the backer even if the ILB sheds the block effectively.

The same block is more difficult for the guard when the LB is in the stacked alignment. The ILB is flowing play side too quickly and the angle for the guard is too extreme for the block to be effective.

The stacked backers helps even the numbers for the defense. In this case the offense is presenting 6 blockers and can option a 7th defender on a dual option play. The defense now has 7 defenders. If the defense lost the extra LB (cut off by the back side guard for example), the offense would be advantaged with 6 blockers for 6 defenders and the ability to option one of the defenders.

Georgia Tech is blocking for 6 defenders and optioning the 7th (Sam). The QB is keeping or pitching off the Sam backer's reaction.

This is where the perimeter support comes into play. The defense has choices of who will be the pitch player on the option. The Safety, Corner, or OLB could all fill that role.

In this diagram the support is a safety support (Safety playing pitch). On paper the offense has good angles to get the defense blocked.

In this diagram the support is a corner support. Again the offense has good angles to block the support players.

In this clip the Georgia defense stems to a stacked backer alignment pre-snap and plays a corner support. The OLB plays the QB, when the ball is pitched. GT's edge blocking has the Corner (pitch player) blocked with the arcing slot.

Clemson elected to play Backer support instead.

The OLB plays laterally for the pitch while the Safety fits inside in the alley. The arc block of the slot makes the angle to block the safety difficult.

By changing up the support, Clemson has the advantage on the edge. Clemson played multiple fronts and supports in the game to keep GT off balance. Good stuff from Coach Venables and the Tigers. 

Flexbone Play Action Passes

A couple of examples of play action pass (PAP) from the Navy offense.

Navy is using a double slot formation with the WR snugged down with tight splits.  The slot to the side of the action does a nice job selling a seal block on the LB before running his crossing route.

This route is designed to attack coverage rotation with the option action. The back side rotation safety is in a bind with both an action side vertical threat and the delaying slot on the crossing route. 

The next route is from a tackle over unbalanced formation.

The route ends up a 4 receiver release to the weak side. The route concept spaces well to stress the coverage. The QB does a good job off the play fake of setting up in the pocket created by the unbalanced OL. Unbalanced formation tend to heavy run, this play is a reminder flexbone teams do have PAP from the unbalanced formations.

These are well designed concepts from the Navy offense and ones be aware of if you are defending a flexbone team next season. 

Texas Odd Front Cross Fire Pressure

Texas running a classic cross fire pattern from an odd front 3-4 personnel.

The Rush:

Ends - Contain

Nose - Work away from pressure

LB's  - Cross fire in A & B Gap

The Coverage:

3 under 3 deep firezone

The first blitzer does a great job getting penetration and the second blitzer has an excellent ricochet redirect off the OT's block. The blitzers do a great job of attacking the OG and OT which allows Texas to beat a 7 man full slide protection with a 5 man zone dog.

Great pressure from the Longhorns. 

Michigan Open Edge Run Pressure

When a TE is in the game, one tried and true pressure strategy is to slant the defensive line to the TE and send extra rushers to the open side (opposite the TE). The philosophy is simple, the moving DL make the TE side runs more difficult and help build a wall. The defense is looking to force the RB to hit the wall or cut back way from the moving DL into the extra rushers.

Michigan is in a sub personnel with 3 LB's 2 Rush Backer (OLB/DE types in 2 pt stances) and 1 down lineman. The secondary is a 6 DB dime personnel.

The Rush:
The front is slanting to the DE with 2 edge rushers. The inside edge rusher is able to bend flat and chase down the RB on run away while the outside edge rusher is able to play for boot/naked from the QB.

The Coverage:
Cover 1 with the mugged up LB manned on the RB.

Good job by the TE side edge rush building the wall and the bending open side rusher chasing the RB down.

Good stuff from Coach Brown and the Wolverines.

Texas Cover 1 Safety Pressure

Here Texas is in a 3-2-6 Dime personnel on 3rd & 14.

The Rush:
Ends  - Contain
Nose - Work away from pressure
Will - A gap
Safety - Walk down blitz B

The Coverage:
Cover 1

The Nickel and DIme appear to signal an "In & Out" combination coverage on the closely aligned #2 and #3 receivers. The Mike is mugged up on the guard while manned on the RB. Post-snap the Mike green dogs and adds to the pass rush.

The mugged up LB's gets the OL into a 5 vs. 5 situation. Every OL has an immediate threat to block forcing them into 5 games of 1 on 1. The occupied OL force the RB into blocking the blitzing safety. In coverage the In & Out has a hard route combo to handle with both #2 and #3 running inside breaking routes. Fortunately, the pressure hits home before the routes can come open.

Good stuff from Coach Orlando and the Longhorns.