Giving the DL a Two-Way Go Pass Rush

Here is a simple DL pass rush stunt we call Eyes. 

The End has a two way go on the OT. The DT bull rushes the guard while eying the DE. 

If the DE takes the inside rush the DT will convert to a contain rush lane looping outside the DE.

The left DE takes the inside move and wins inside against the OT's overset and shoulder turn. The left DT eyes the DE while using his hands on the guard to throw and loop to contain.

If the DE stays outside the DT will work a pass rush on the Guard. 

The right DE works an outside speed rush and long arm on the OT. The right DT has good eyes while using this hands on the guard. When the DT sees the DE outside he converts to an inside pass rush with an arm over.

Eyes is a simple stunt that allows the DE the freedom to go win. The DE's only rule is make a decision inside or outside and attack. 

Eyes is a good way to let a good pass rusher go attack. 

Align to Win Part 2

What is the difference between personnel and spacing? As there is no universal football terminology, I'll start with how we define these terms.

Personnel is the people on the field. If we want to substitute a player into the game because that player has a skill set for the job at hand, we can do that with a personnel group change. Need an extra DB, sub one in with a new personnel group. Need your best pass rushing DL on the field, sub them in with a personnel group on 3rd & Obvious Pass downs. Bottom line Base personnel subs out for a specialized personnel group. Could be a a 1 for 1 sub or a mass substitution. 

Spacing is how the defenders line up. Can a 3-4 personnel space like a 5-2, 5-3, 4-3, 4-2, or 3-3, yeah absolutely. Can a 4-2-5 with a hybrid player at DE morph into 3-4 concepts, definitely. As a defense, we are not bound in any way by the idea that personnel dictates spacing. If we have versititle players, specifically hybrid DB/LB or LB/DL we can play any number of spacings with the same personnel on the field. 

Got a sub group of elite speed rushers, great, create a 3rd down specialized pass rush package and go sic 'em. But what if your best 11 are just that, your best 11. This is where spacing and align to win come together to help create specialized pass rush opportunites with base personnel.

FRONTS

Take a base 3rd down pass rush alignment. The DT's widen to work pass rush against the guards and the DE's are outside against the OT's. If the DE's are the best rushers and the guards are the weaker protectors it's possible the offense has exactly the matchups they want (G's vs DT's and OT's vs DE's).

With a simple call the defense can instead flip the DL alignments. This is still a 4 man front spacing with new roles for the DL.

Now the interior OL has to contend with the better rushers. The DT's soak up the better pass protectors on the outside. The DT's likely can align with width and keep contain. This alignment also lends itself to still running pass rush games.

Ultimately this stunt gets the DE back out to the outside.


Maybe the defense wants to attack a specific side of the protection. Again a front adjustment can help.

Nothing says the defense cannot align with both DE's on the same side. The DT's can  contain and build a backstop opposite the Ends. The DE's can now work base pass rush or pass rush games and attack the weaker side of the protection.

Change the Spacing

Another option is to build an X rusher package. The idea is simple if you have a good rusher to sub you can sub for the X. If you don't you use your base 4 DL as the 3 down linemen and declare one as the X rusher. Who should be the X? Possibly the best rusher because the X can align anywhere and has good rush opportunities. Is is also possible to use the 2nd best rusher as the X. This allows a slightly lesser player to get and advantage in the rush and have the best chance to succeed. Meanwhile away from the stunting X can be the best rusher working in isolation.

Edge - X off the edge

The X can align off the edge and rush like a OLB type pressure. The X makes an Edge Left or Edge Right call to declare where he is aligning and rushing. The front works away from the X's call.

The Nose and DE opposite can also work pass rush games to create good matchups opposite an edge call.

Gilligan - Guard on an Island

The X can walk up an isolate the Guard with a two way go. Again the Nose and End opposite the X can work base pass rush or a rush game. The X calls Gilligan Right/Left. From the same X on the guard alignment the X can work pass rush games with the End or the Nose. 

Another option is to build a choice package for the X. For example:

 Against sets with the RB set to the boundary or other drop back pass indicators the X calls Gilligan to the weakest OG.

But against sets with a threat of sprint out pass the X calls Edge to the sprint out threat. With a little planning the defense can be in a best rush situation with a simple set of weekly rules.

A defense can easily build multiple pass rush stunts by aligning the X rusher where ever the defense wants. The spacing choices are endless. X can line up as a Stack LB, 2 point or three point, stem around pre-snap, blitz into the rush, etc.

The X package can be a way to get great spacing multiplicity without subbing new personnel. The defense can easily use the X package to also build in various 5 man pressures and 6+ blitzes with the multiple spacing options of having the X rusher anywhere. When thinking about aligning to win, the defense has no rules about # on the LOS or structure of our alignments. Why does our best pass rush DE have to line up on an OT?

Align to Win Part 1

In an effort to give our defensive front the best chance to win, we try to coach the game within the game. The offense has tendencies based on how they line up and we are going to use those tendencies to help ourselves do our jobs. Good defenses react, great defenses anticipate. 

Take a standard 4 man even front with a 4-2 box. The easy alignment explanation is:

DE's - 5 technique 
DT - 3 tech
Nose - Shade

LB's - Ability to play open A and B Gap.

But do those simple alignments give us the best chance to win each play? If you watched a cut up and keyed the DT in a 3 tech, is he always aligned the exact same way?  Should he be? Maybe a 3 technique isn't always just outside shade on the guard. Maybe there is more to it.

Take a formation with the back aligned to the 3 technique side. The most obvious play, but certainly not the only play, for the offense is the inside zone read. With the back aligned away, the Nose and End will widen their alignments. Those 2 know the OL's blocks are coming to them with the RB aligned away. The Nose in a Wide alignment may align physically where a 2i would align but will have inside hand down inside foot back keying the Center. This alignment allows the Nose to leverage the Center's block well and control the A gap. The End has the width to set the edge. The Will is protected by the width of the Nose's alignment, as the Guard doesn't want to hang the Center out vs. the Nose 1 on 1. The result is the Guard is typically not too fast to work up to the Will backer because he is providing body position for the Center. 

The alignment also effects the Mike fast flowing the A gap. The Center is forced to zone hard to the wide alignment nose opening the A gap for the Mike to press the LOS. The backside Guard is forced to zone hard to the Mike. This is why the DT has widened to a 4i. He is now 1 on 1 with the OT and wants to put is eyes on his work. Hands and eyes go to the OT and we expect to win that 1 on 1 consistently. The DT has a leverage advantage. The backside DE is a shuffle square player for QB and cutback. The 4i DT makes the cutback very difficult.

What if the defense wants to chase the DE to the dive instead. The Nose and DE would still go wide. The backside DT will go heavy 3 (almost head up) to force the OT and OG into an aggressive scoop block. The backside DE will heavy up and chase hard. The LB's now align in 20's to allow the Mike to scrape exchange for the QB. The Will plays B and rocks back. The Nose's wide alignment will force the ball to cutback to the chasing DE.

Inside zone read isn't the only play for the offense. 

If the back is flat the offense may be running stretch and is much less likely to run inside zone read. The DT backside will heavy up to make the backside scoop block as difficult as possible for the guard and tackle. Frontside the Nose will slide to a G (2i) alignment. By changing eyes and hands of the Nose from the Center to the Guard the Nose has a much better chance to beat the reach of the Center.

Another play from the flat back alignment is the power read play. Again having the DT in a heavy and the Nose in a G is advantageous. The DT is much better position to squeeze the block back by the Center. The Nose is much firmer against the down block of the guard in a 2i by bringing his eyes and hands to the guard. 

These simple adjustments can go a long way to helping defenders make plays. It is always the temptation as a defensive coach to think about all kinds of exotic schemes and stunts. Often times the best answer is your base defense. One strategy in game planning can be to avoid the "what call should we make here?" conversations and focus instead on how will we coach our guys to align to win.

4-2-5 Basics: Alignment of the DL in a Divorced Front Concept

This is the first post in a series about Basics of the 4-2-5 Defense. Let me start with two disclaimers.

1. I am going to try to use generic terminology when discussing the 4-2-5. There is no universal terminology in football.
2. This series of posts is not comprehensive. The terms, concepts, and schemes I am writing about will not cover every 4-2-5 scheme being run everywhere.

So here we go. The 4-2-5 provides the platform to be multiple. 4-2-5 schemes have roots in 4-4, 4-3, and Nickel defenses. Combining elements from each scheme is what gives the 4-2-5 its versatility.  

Drawing on the scheme’s nickel roots gives 4-2-5 teams the ability to run a divorced front concept. The idea is the front 6 align based on front alignment rules. 

The DB’s align based on secondary alignment rules. Because the front and defensive backs have independent alignment rules the front is “divorced” from the secondary.

Looking at setting the front 6 defenders, there are a number of options. For the following discussion we are going to start with a basic front.

This example is a G front with the DE's in 5 techniques, the DT in a 3, the Nose in a 2i, the Mike responsible for the A gap, and the Will responsible for the B gap.

Getting the front lined up usually involves a LB making a declaration that tells the front where to go.

Here the DE, DT, and Mike travel together and go to the call. If the LB calls “Liz” those 3 players go to the left. The DE, Nose, and Will travel together and go away from the call. 

When the LB calls “Rip” the DE, DT, and Mike align to the right and the DE, Nose, and Will go to the left.

This is certainly not the only way to do it. Some teams set the front based on the Nose.

Here the DE, Nose, Will go to the call and the DE, DT, and Mike go away.

I think this choice comes down to how the defensive coordinator thinks. If the coordinator thinks about the front based on the 3 tech, it makes sense to set the front based on the 3. If the coordinator visualizes the defense based on the Nose, the front should get set based on the Nose.

Another choice some defenses make is using a right and left DE instead of them traveling to and away from the call. A Right and Left system is great for helping the DE’s get lined up. The DE’s know where they are going without a call. The DE’s also get to develop the consistency of stance, vision, and muscle memory from always being on the same side. The drawback of using right and left is the defense has less control over aligning the DE’s where they want them every time. Another consideration of Call/Away DE vs. Right/Left DE is the similarity of the players at those positions. If the DE’s on a team have similar profiles, a right/left system may be the way to go. If the DE’s have different profiles, the defense may want more control over where they are aligned.

When it comes to setting the front the defense can have the LB set the front anywhere it wants.

Strong/Weak

Strong - Make the Rip/Liz call to the pass strength (higher number of receivers).

Weak – Make the Rip/Liz call away from the pass strength

When setting the front strong/weak the defense must have a plan to deal with a balanced formation.

Field/Boundary (Some teams call this Wide/Short)

Field – Make the Rip/Liz call to the wide field

Boundary – Make the Rip/Liz call to the short side of the field.

Tite/Split (Some teams call this Closed/Open)

Tite – Make the Rip/Liz call to the TE

Split – Make the Rip/Liz call away from the TE

When setting the front Tite/Split the defense must have a plan to deal with when the offense flexes the TE. The defense must also have a plan to handle TE trade. There must also be rules to handle two TE’s sets.

Heavy/Lite (I have seen a bunch of other names for this concept)

Heavy – Make the Rip/Liz call to an offset back

This could be an offset back in the shotgun or an offset fullback.

Lite – Make the Rip/Liz call away from the offset back

The defense must consider what to call when there is no offset back (pistol or under center). Also the defense has to consider what to do against running back motion.

Rip/Liz

The defensive coordinator can set the front right or left.

If there is another place the defense wants to set the front, all the defense needs is a word. Because the front is divorced from the coverage the defensive coordinator can get more from less. With one front (G) and one coverage (3) the defense has the flexibility of 10+ calls.

1. Field G 3
2. Boundary G 3
3. Tite G 3
4. Split G 3
5. Strong G 3
6. Weak G 3
7. Heavy G 3
8. Lite G 3
9. Rip G 3
10. Liz G 3

These calls fall into 1 of 2 basic categories: guaranteed calls or conditional calls. Guaranteed calls like Field, Boundary, Rip, and Liz are going to be there no matter what the offense does. The conditional calls like Strong, Weak, Tite, Split, Heavy, and Lite are dependent on the how the offense aligns. When calling conditional calls the defense must have solutions for dealing with an offense who changes the condition after the defense has set the front.

Take for example a 21 personnel team who has strong TE run tendencies. That may lead the defense to plan on setting the front Tite. If the offense trades the TE, how will the defense respond? Here are some of the options.

Nothing – The defense has the ability to do nothing. The result is the defense ends up in the same look it would be in if the front had been set split. 

If when the TE trades the defense adjusts very little, it sends a powerful message to the offense. The offense is looking at how the defense reacts. If the offense moves 1 player and the defense moves 6 in response, you can expect to see the offense continue to trade the TE trying to make 6 defenders move before every snap. If the defense doesn’t have many players moving on the trade, the offense may decide trading the TE is not worth their effort.

Reset – If the defense wants to get the front to the TE, the defense can reset the front. Here the original call is “Liz”. When the TE trades the LB makes a “Reset Rip” call. 

The Tackle and Nose switch and the Mike and Will switch. The DE’s stay on their side. It is often too far of a run to get the DE’s reset.

The final result is the defense back to having the front set Tite. Resetting the front may not be fast enough to deal with the offense. 

Slide – Slide is an option the defense can use that allows the defense to get a 3 technique to the TE in a different way. Here the LB calls “Slide” to the DL. 

This tells the Tackle and Nose to slide their alignments pre-snap. The Nose becomes a 3 technique, and the tackle becomes the 2i. 

The drawback of this solution is the Nose and Tackle now have to play new techniques. Also the Mike and Will have new run fits when the front is in a slide alignment.

Slant – The DL can slant when the TE trades. Here the LB calls “Slant” when the TE trades. The Tackle and Nose slant post-snap which gets the defense back to a Tite front look.

That is the basic concept of a divorced front. Not all 4-2-5 defenses run a divorced front this way. Not all 4-2-5 defenses choose to run a divorced front at all. Let me know if this similar to what you are running in the comments. If you do something different leave that in the comments too.

7 Man Overload Blitz from the Bear Front

There are multiple ways to get to the Bear front alignment. If you align in the bear from a 4-3, 4-2-5, 3-4, or 3-3-5 personnel this blitz is a possibility. The coverage is cover zero with the defensive line accounting for the running back in coverage.

The Rush:

Ends: Contain Rush, Peel if the running back crosses your face in a route

Tackles : Inside Rush through the B gap, Read the block of the Guard

Nose - Engage the Center, Spy the running back

Mike & Will - Inside blitz your A gap

The Coverage:
Corners - Man #1
Safeties - Man #2 or #3 in a 3x1 formation away from you.

Spy & Peel Technique

The Nose will get off the ball and engage the center. Once engaged the Nose should get his eyes to the running back.

If the running back steps up inside, the Nose will disengage the center and man cover the back.

This technique should put the Nose in great position to defend any running back screen concepts.

If the running back blocks one of the blitzing linebackers the Nose becomes an extra rusher.

The linebacker is an inside blitzer and will always attack the block of the running back to the inside. By attacking the inside of the running back, the linebacker will disrupt the QB's rhythm and footwork. The Nose will work to the outside of the block. The Nose must be aware of the RB chipping the linebacker before running a screen. If the back does block the Will, the Nose should be in good position to clean up the QB if the Will does not get the sack.

If the running back releases, the End will handle covering him in man coverage.

The Nose will go to cover the running back. As the back is picked up by the End, the Nose will replace the End as the contain rusher.

Read Technique

Both Tackles have read technique. The DT's are getting off on the snap and attacking the guards. If the guard pass sets to the DT, the DT drops outside looking for a hot throw. The depth for the DT's drop is 3-5 yards. If the guard does not set to the DT, the DT continues to pass rush through the B gap. Depending on the blocking scheme one, both, or neither DT could drop.

The defense is presenting 4 rushers to the right (End, Tackle, Mike, and Nose) the offense only has 3 blockers (RT, RG, Center). The extra (unblocked) rusher should force a hot throw. The right DT is reading out and should drop hot. 

To the left the offense has 3 blockers (LT, LG, and RB) for 3 rushers (End, Tackle, and Will). 

If the center attempts to create a 3 vs. 3 to the right (Center, RG, RT for End, Tackle, Mike) the defense has a 4 on 3 overload to the running back. The Will should attack the RB to the inside while the Nose works to the outside of the RB. 

Torch: Lighting Up the Offense with a Read Twist

Twists can be used to great effect in disrupting an offense. Unfortunately, twists can also create gap control/pass rush lane issues for the defense. When a twist is called to the right place at the right time the result is defensive success. The challenge is getting the twist to the right place the highest percentage of the time. One solution is to have the defensive linemen read the twist to determine who will penetrate and who will loop. Torch is a read twist by the interior defensive linemen. TORCH stands for Tackles Read the Center. The DT's can be aligned in a heavy 3 and 2i, 2 head up 2's or in 2 inside shade 2i's to run the twist. Both DT's step initially inside and read the block of the center.

The rules are:

• If the center blocks away from you - Penetrate
• If the center blocks toward you - Loop

Here the center is blocking toward the Tackle and away from the Nose. The Nose reads the center blocking away and continues to penetrate to the opposite A gap. The Tackle has the center blocking toward him and will use his hands on the center then loop over the top of the penetrating Nose.

Here the Tackle reads the center away and penetrates. The Nose reads the center blocking toward and loops.

Torch is an effective pass rush stunt. 

When the center pass sets toward the Nose the Tackle becomes the penetrator. This is a 1 on 1 inside pass rush against the guard for the Tackle. The initial inside step by the Nose holds the center's attention and prevents help by the center on the penetrator. Our Tackles beat the guard's block in this situation a percentage of the time. The rest of the time the Tackle's penetration disrupts the QB's footwork. The QB has difficulty stepping up into the throw when the penetrator is on the midline. If the QB does not attempt to step up, the contain rushing DE's have a great opportunity to collapse the pocket. Often the QB's most viable option is to slide in the pocket away from the penetration.

 The QB feels open space to step into a throw or to use as an escape lane. As the QB slides into the open space the Nose loops into the same space and pressures the passer.

When the center pass sets to the Tackle typically the offense is in some form of slide protection. The Nose now has the 1 on 1 inside pass rush. The Tackle will loop and apply late pressure on the QB as he slides in the pocket away from the penetration.

Torch is also good against the run.

Against power the center will always block back away from the play. Therefore, the looping DT will always be looping into the play. The play side offensive tackle is combo-ing to the backside ILB and is not looking for a looping DT. We have also had success against power with the penetrator disrupting the path of the pulling guard. Torch is similarly effective against any other gap scheme play with down blocks and a puller (Counter, Trap, Pin&Pull Stretch or Toss, the Wing-T, etc.) 

Against zone blocking the center will block play side. The penetration forces the running back to cut back directly into the looper. 

Torch is effective vs. the run and the pass. The negative is the investment time to get good at running it. One simple drill we use to teach Torch requires two DT's, a coach/player , two garbage cans, and a hand shield.

The coach lines up as the center holding the hand shield. The garbage cans stand in as guards. The Tackle and Nose react to the movement of the hand shield as the ball. The DT's take their initial step then either penetrate or loop. In the first reps of the drill, I tell the DL where I am going to step. They know pre-snap if they are a looper or a penetrator. The focus on the reps where the DL know what is going to happen is the technique of the twist. Both DL must focus on get-off. When DL are first taught the Torch concept in install meeting they often equate reading the block with slow off the ball. We work hard to make sure they react to the ball and re-establish the L.O.S. on their first step when Torch is called. The other coaching point for the penetrator is to get to an aiming point in the opposite A gap. For the looper the key is to shock the hand shield and use great block shed technique before looping. The center is stepping toward you to block you. You must shock & shed before your loop. 

Once we get everyone reps where they know pre-snap what they are going to do, we transition into the DT's  not knowing where the center will block. The DT's must now react to the center while maintaining great technique as in the early reps. I like to put a player at center on these reps. The drill is simple and very rapid fire. Every DT can get a bunch of reps in a 5 minute period of practice. 

Our defensive tackles have taken a great deal of ownership in Torch. I think they feel it is "THEIR" call in the same way a linebacker feels about a blitz. Torch is a nice addition to your arsenal if you are looking for a way to twist to the right place more often.