info about Pendergast and his Cardinal scheme
 

Scheme flexibility

Do the Cardinals run a 3-4 or 4-3 defense? The answer is, well, yes.

By Eric Edholm
Jan. 30, 2009

TAMPA, Fla. - Cardinals LB coach Bill Davis leaned back in his seat, exhaled and tried to remember a conversation he had five years and two jobs ago.

"I have been so many places, you tend to forget what you did when and when things happened," Davis said "It all blends together."

Indeed. In 17 NFL seasons, Davis has worked for eight clubs and has run or been a part of just about every kind of defensive scheme there is. He has been around long enough to have seen the 3-4 defense go out of style and subsequently come back as, what Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians calls it, "the vogue defense right now," including his own team's superior unit.

But do the Cardinals run a 3-4 also? The answer might surprise you.

"Everybody puts us in that 3-4 category, but what we are is an 'under front, a 4-3 'under' defense, "Davis explains. "The 'under' is almost a 3-4. As 3-4 [defenses] go, it's not really what we do here."

An 'under' defense slants towards the tight end. Likewise, an 'over' front shifts away from the tight end. As he explains the workings of the Cardinal's defense, Davis starts talking, then does as any good coach or teacher would: He grabs a pen and paper. "Well,here, let me show you want i mean ..."

Pretty soon, he's scratching out the defensive scheme on a paper, the same one the Cardinals will use to try to stop the Steelers on Sunday. He also, for comparison, sketches out the traditional 3-4 defense and the 4-3 'even' front, both of what he has taught and coached in the NFL.

"When you're talking about the 3-4 team, you have the three D-lineman," Davis said. "Then you have [two] outside 'backers; then [the inside linebackers] bubble on the guards."

Bubbling, in the defensive terms, is to line up across from an uncovered offensive lineman. In the 3-4, it's the two offensive guards that most often don't have a defensive lineman in front of them. The defensive ends are lined up in a five-techniques, or on the outside shoulder of the offensive tackles. The nose tackle is head up across from the center.

Said Davis: "These guys [defensive linemen] are supposed to two-gap, and these outside [linebackers] are interchangeable rush-or-pass guys. And that's the dynamic of the 3-4."

But in the 4-3 'under' front, like the Cardinals use as their base defense which looks similar to the 3-4 to the naked eye, the biggest difference is in the outside linebackers. The strong-side linebacker is still outside the tightend. But the other outside guy - the Cardinals call this player their "Predator" - is almost always rushing the passer, although the Cards will occasionally drop him into covers to mix things up. Other differences: The nose tackle shades to the A-gap (in between the center and the guard) on the tightend side, and the end on that side moves between the tackle and tightend.

Davis explained that the 3-4 defense creates the most confusion for the offense in terms of which outside linebacker is doing what, and the standard 4-3 offers the least unpredictability. The Cardinals 4-3 'under' scheme is somewhere between the two in terms of causing the offense to guess who is rushing and who is dropping.

The only player in the 4-3 'under' who is left uncovered is the "Mike," or the middle linebacker. In the Cardinals' scheme, that's usually Gerald Hayes. "That's my thumper, more of a thick guy," Davis said, circling the capital M on his piece of paper. "In the 'over' front, when i was in Atlanta [2001 to 2003], we put Keith Brooking - we were actually playing an even scheme, too - but we stacked Keith right behind the three [technique] and he got to run and make players and use his athleticism, and he made his first Pro Bowl playing behind the three."

But in this scheme Hayes, listed at 249 pounds ("or a little less than that," he admits with a wink and smile), is the only uncovered linebacker. That means he often will be taking on 300-pound guards head on. On Sunday, it could be Steeler ORG Darnell Stapleton and his 305 pounds that will meet Hayes more than once. "You don't think about," Hayes says, "you just do it. You can't worry about taking those guys on. It comes with the territory."

Antonio Smith and Darnell Dockett are the ends in this system, backed up by rookies Kenny Iwabema and Calais Campbell. Bryan Robinson and Gabe Watson are the nose tackles. Chike Okeafor is the primary strong-side linebacker, now that Clark Haggans is out with and injury.

Karlos Dansby is the weak-side linebacker. The way the defense is set up, he has a nice protective shield to keep potential blockers at bay. "what we've done with Karlos is put him behind a three-technique, so basically - we call these anchor points - he's got a wall in front of him," Davis said. "So he can run and use his athleticism. The center can't get him because the nose is on him. The guard can't get him because the end is on him. And the tackle can't get him because the predator is on him. So this is your athlete that can run, go cover ground and make plays.

Th "Predator" position is manned by Bertrand Berry and Travis LaBoy, assuming LaBoy is healthy enough to play Sunder. Both guys really are defensive ends by trade, but Davis considers them his guys.

"At the end of the day, I have these guys [the "Predators"] in my meeting room, so that puts us closer to this scheme [4-3 under]," he said. "And i put them in a two-point stance. This is the key right there: This guy right here [the three-technique weak side end] almost makes us have to rush the passer. As soon as you move him inside [from a five-technique], his responsibility in this is to play this very same gap."

Davis has coached this scheme with the Giants and 49ers, but this is the first time in a while one of his defenses has used it as the base grouping. He has picked up pieces of different schemes from a bunch of different schools around the league and likes the flexibility of what he and the other defenses have discover in the 4-3 'under' formation.

"The [Bill] Belichicks, [Dom] Capers, the [Bill] Parcells, that whole group ... they play the 'under' front most of the time, but they move to it," Davis said. "So are we a 3-4? Almost."

It just depends on how you look at it. Or under it.

he had tow jobs?

I wonder if he had his own truck.....

All that pertinent information and all you get out of it is a typo.


dunno why i took the time to post it at all. :shake:

When a news article has a misspelled word in the first sentence... I tend to stop reading because I can't take the writer seriously.

If he can't take the time to proof read his article then I don't have the time to read it.

3-4 , 4-3 ?

Yes

Ineresting.... thx.

I'd be a bit concerned here because Arizona has quite a bit of talent to work with, they atleast have a "core" that their team is built around.

Well, the problem is we surely don't have the personnel to run a 3-4 scheme. Hell, it's not any more comforting to see it arranged in a 4-3 either.

Arizona was obviously more of a 3-4 than a 4-3 when you have guys like Calais Campbell being drafted in the 2nd round you're leaning to 3-4.

If we can build a pass rush, and "coach up" Morgan, Page, and Pollard...

Then maybe the ideal scenario would be to trade down (if at all possible) and still snag Brown, possibly find a late round gem LB or DE...

Maybe we would be ok.

Surely not as bad as last year.

It must just be me but Page and Pollard don't strike me as guys who would start on good teams.

AZ played more of a 5 DL 2 LB base and called it a 3-4 hybrid. They were very inconsistent but to their credit they played well in the playoffs while their offense was putting pts on the board.

Pollard's a big hitter with poor coverage skills, IMO. Page can be a ball hawk at times, but he's not a smart player overall so I don't see him sticking around.

I'm hoping Morgan steps up this year, he seemed like a kid with potential this time last year, and he did see some playing time. Although he also made some rookie mistakes.

I'm really hoping coaching & new scheme make a big difference, although I realize we still have to overhaul the front seven.

This part is true, but also another thing is that I felt that Arizona had more talent than KC does on the defensive side.

Morgan needs time, he's very talented but very raw, he didn't have a ton of playing experience in college.

Pollard should do what Jon McGraw does....Page I don't know what he is unless you want to use some kind of big nickel package, it's kinda shitty to think we still need 1 if not 2 safeties.

Among the many interesting things to keep track of is watching certain players fall off the roster because they either don't fit the new scheme, or they suck as players and won't be protected by the previous staff.

At the same time, their is going to be some players that will excel in the scheme, or will take to the new and "improved" coaching.

What I don't like about this is...

He was apparently running a 4-3/3-4 hybrid no? Like Mecca said, he had oodles of talent, and not the greatest results.

Wisenhunt is a Pittsburgh guy. That means something, and even though he was an offensive coach, I'm sure defense is a big deal to him. He had to have learned a lot in Pittsburgh. He should know how important defense is, and not just defense, but the 3-4 defense.

Well anyway, if Wisenhunt never trusted Pendergast to do the job, gave him a chance(forced to really), and still fired him. Well, lets just say it doesn't say a whole lot of good about our new D coordinator.

Mr. Krab's,

LOL at your valiant but vain attempt to make the author appear literate. You'll have to do a lot more editing to get to that point.

"... the traditional 3-4 defense and the 4-3 'even' front, both of what he has tought and coached in the NFL."

CRIPEY. Is this guy actually paid to put words in print?

Good teams generally have coaches who know how to utilize their players strengths, and with Pollard he's never been used that way. On a GOOD team, Pollard might actually start, and he might actually be GOOD. He was every bit the man at Purdue that Bob Sanders was at Iowa. He's not a cover 2 safety, but don't tell the idiots that were running the show that.

You want to talk about guys that don't belong, let's talk about Page.

You guys are WAY overestimating Arizona's "talent" on the defensive side of the ball. Their "core" consists of a 2nd-tier safety, a streaky DT, a 2nd-round LB, and a CB that they can't find a spot for because he's not good enough to play CB fulltime.

You gotta' get Pollard out of coverage. He tries, but it's just not his thing. You put him in charge of shutting down the run up the middle and applying a little extra pressure on outside and interior blitzes, and he'll produce for you.

Bingo. In a rushing defense, the FS has to be your "miracle man" when the pressure and the sack don't bear fruit.

Page barely "flashed" at all in 2008, while Morgan stepped up and played a hell of a game against Denver at Arrowhead. I think Morgan could step again and really shine with the right scheme and coaching.

Why does Krumrie have a job? Seriously? Is his patented "Bitchy Slap Fight Drill" such an Awesome Tool Of The Gods, that he must be retained at all costs?

Meh.

interesting, thanks....

My question is how good/bad is the talent on D? I've read many times that it takes anywhere from 2-4 years to really know what you got from a rookie d-lineman. The chiefs have 2 guys going into year #3 under questionable coaching/scheme and a 2nd yr. guy. I'm thinking that although alot of folks on this board have given up on T-D-T already that they still have a chance to develop. I strongly agree that the Chiefs need a good pass rusher and better lb's and better quality depth as the injuries showed last year.

OK! Can anybody here tell me weather or not either one of these two differences in the NT position... or the DE position would be a move in the positive direction from the straight 3-4 for Glen Dorsey... and Glen Dorsey only.

Most here seem to think he can not play the NT in a straight 3-4. Is this slight move over into the gap a play to his strength?

Or, if he is still more of a DE candidate in this scheme?

Page and Pollard are two players that I believe are going to benefit big time from this scheme. Cover 2's require safeties to cover a lot more ground than any other defense.

The Tampa 2 look demands a good pass rush. They have corners who jam receivers at the line to keep receivers from running in full sprint to the second level. If the receiver has enough time to recover and get back to full speed, there's nothing your defense can do.

In other words, when the pass rush disappears, the safeties in a Tampa 2 are always going to look bad. I think Page and Pollard are easily the two players who will benefit the most from a scheme change.

Coogs, don't listen to anyone who says Dorsey can be a 3-4 NT. They're out of their mind. Dorsey is not a space-eating guy whose job is to stand there and absorb blockers. And he'll never be strong enough to do it because he has some knee problems that will always keep him from gaining enough leg strength to be great at getting that leverage. His strength is going to be as a 1-gap tackle that darts through the line.

Unfortunately, that means that as a 3-4 DE, it's not a whole lot different. He'll be more of a guy who absorbs blockers and stuffs the run than he will be a pass rusher. And he might be too short for the role. No doubt his place is as a 4-3 DT. But much as I like Dorsey, you don't build an entire defense around him. He might be out of place, but that shouldn't stop the Chiefs from thinking about running a 3-4.

The key is that when you run a 4-3, you need great pass rushers off the edge and that has become one of the toughest things to find. Arguably the second-most difficult position to find outside of QB. And you need to find not one but TWO of them.

That's why a lot of teams run a 3-4. Much easier to find pass rushers. And arguably, that might be where this team could be the strongest. You don't need pass rushers on the line here. You need 3 DTs who can occupy blockers and keep linemen off the LBs, who can then fill in the gaps.

But wouldn't a 4-3 scheme that benifits Dorsey be because he can line up in a gap? In this system, he would still be in a gap. Maybe not the same one as his best 4-3 role would be, but in a gap none the less.

And for that matter, I know I asked about Dorsey only... mostly because he is a #5 overall pick, but would this slight shift over benifit Tyler more than a straight up on the Center setup as well?

But isn't that what this would be? A 1-gap tackle?

SUCK ASS

Regaurdless as to what people on here are saying, Dorsey is a special talent. He didn't do much last year and I don't know exactly why. I think we have forgotten just how dominating he was in college. Now that we have a more talented front office:shrug: I hope. Dorsey will shine no matter where they put him on the D line

They would have to play 2-gap--the B and C gaps. They'd basically be guys who open up lanes for the LBs and safeties in pass defense, and guys who need to be all over the field in the run game. Who knows... maybe Dorsey won't be that bad. But it will probably be misusing his talents. Then again, he did play 2-gap at LSU.

Tank could do find in a 3-4 too. Though, I think he could be a huge benefit as a backup NT if we can get him to put on some pounds. The guy that benefits the most, in my opinion, is Turk McBride. I think he could be a really, really good 3-4 End.

Obviously, I am not well versed on how the D-line works. Isn't 2-gap... B and C where the DT is lined up straight over the guard? And isn't that what we did with Dorsey that Brian Waters was taking a shot at our defensive strategy in J-Whit's column late in the season?

Here is the article...

Whitlock: Someone should be fired for way Chiefs using Dorsey

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/col...ry/947588.html

After the Chiefs’ latest loss — a 38-31 thriller to the Dolphins courtesy of Kansas City’s three-point second-half explosion — I intended to write a column summarizing what progress has been made this season.

It was going to be a very short story. But then, as I was standing in the corner waiting to get a private word with Herm Edwards, a squatty, would-be linebacker/fullback walked by me on the way to the shower. Tattooed on the back of his shoulders were six rather large letters D-O-R-S-E-Y.

“That’s Glenn Dorsey, the Chiefs’ No. 1 draft pick?”

The realization totally blew my mind. Oh, I’ve seen Dorsey plenty in the locker room after games. But never barefoot. And never without a clear view of his face. Until Sunday, I had no clue that Glenn Dorsey is a shade below 6 feet tall. You put him in a police lineup with other NFL players, and you peg him as a plodding fullback. He’s Lorenzo Neal.

Now Dorsey’s disappointing season makes perfect sense, and the case to retain Herm Edwards and his coaching staff gets even more difficult to argue.

What in the hell are they doing playing Dorsey straight-up over a guard?

This is the single-worst, defensive-strategy decision I’ve seen in 15 years of covering the NFL. Honestly, defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham and defensive-line coach Tim Krumrie should be fired today and not allowed to travel to Cincinnati for the season finale.

And Herm Edwards owes Clark Hunt a detailed explanation of why he allowed Dorsey’s rookie season to be wasted by a boneheaded scheme. Short of Cunningham and Krumrie owning compromising blackmail photos of Edwards, Hunt has no choice but to promptly relieve Edwards of his responsibilities.

You don’t draft a 5-foot-11, 300-pound defensive tackle at No. 5 overall, give him $20-plus million in guaranteed money and then ask him to be a run-stuffer lined head-up over a guard.

For those of you who know little about line play, it’s the equivalent of the Indianapolis Colts turning Peyton Manning into an option quarterback. If Indianapolis did that, Colts fans would justifiably rush the field and trample Tony Dungy and his offensive coaching staff.

Dorsey is listed at 6-1, 297 pounds. Even at those dimensions, the strategy is asininely inappropriate. But if Dorsey is 6-1, then I’m the bastard son of Carl Peterson and Oprah Winfrey.

Dorsey is a butterball, a Jerry Ball, a three-technique tackle who should line up on the outside shoulder of the guard and explode upfield. That’s the only way he can be successful in the NFL. As long as he lines up helmet to helmet with a guard, he’ll remain a line-of-scrimmage statue.

“He has no chance in pass rush,” guard Brian Waters told me. “I love it when a guy lines head-up.”

Members of the Chiefs’ scouting department have blamed Dorsey’s subpar rookie season on the extra weight they allege he’s carrying. I’ve been told on two separate occasions that KC’s scouting department evaluated a 300-pounder who is now playing at 315. The personnel guys stand behind their evaluation of Dorsey, the insinuation being a lighter Dorsey would be a more effective Dorsey.

“The way we’re playing him, he better be 315,” Waters said. “He would get destroyed in the run game at 300.”

Given his size and style of play at LSU, there’s only one justification for taking Dorsey at No. 5: You believe he has a chance to be the kind of backfield-disrupter that Warren Sapp (6-1, 300 in his prime) was. Sapp used his explosiveness, quickness and power to get in gaps and force the action.

The Chiefs are using Dorsey as if he’s Albert Haynesworth, the 6-6, 320-pound Tennessee Pro Bowler. Haynesworth goes wherever he wants on the football field. He takes whatever space he desires.

I have no idea whether the right scheme would improve Dorsey’s production. I question his footwork, quickness and explosion. Maybe those shortcomings would disappear with weight loss and being asked to do what he’s capable.

I do know this season may have damaged him permanently. Competition is a game of confidence. Walking into that locker room and watching film of getting blown up week after week can be demoralizing to any player.

This is simply inexcusable. Most high school coaches would know better than to use Dorsey the way the Chiefs have this season. Dorsey’s use indicates a level of dysfunction between the coaching staff and personnel department that is mind-boggling.

Rather than sort through the mess and try to discern who’s to blame for the poor communication, Hunt has every right to blow up everyone and start over.

I believe he will be usedc differently this year

Care to elaborate?

They might've been, but you're definitely UNDERRATING them quite a bit. AWilson is one of the best safeties in the league. Ditto Dansby at LB and Dockett at DT. Their rotation at end is also solid, and there's a lot of talent in guys like Rolle, DRC, etc. You're definitely trying to minimize what they've actually got.

They are my typos, the website had some kind of copy/paste block so i took the time to re-type the whole thing out for you guys.

Apparently i shouldn't of wasted my time.

:clap::clap::clap:

Thank you very much for taking the time to do this. I thought it was an outstanding read!


:toast::toast::toast:

You're awsome dude! I thought it was very informative.

So how does the personnel differ for for a 4-3 under. Is it 4-3 personnel or 3-4?

PhilFree:arrow:

effort rep.

Now onto substance -- When I hear about a team running both systems, it simply tells me they aren't any good at running either.

Remember 2 seasons ago when we were a 'zone team that ran a lot of man'....ultimately we just didn't cover anyone ever.

Does it remind anyone about Gunther's "Falcon stack" defense?

Yes, which also worked so well.

When this scheme closely reminds me of 2 things that are directly associated with Gunther Cunningham...if you'll excuse me, I need to go vomit.

ROFL That was my thought as well!

USC 4-3 Under Blitz Schemes

By Pete Carroll
Head Football Coach
<st1></st1><o></o>
In order to be successful on defense you need to develop a philosophy. You have to know what you want to do, how you want it to look, and how you want it to feel. A philosophy is like a railroad track. You have a clear cut direction in which you are going. If you start to get off track it becomes real obvious to you. If you don’t know what you want and what you are about you won’t know when you are off course. If you do realize you are off course you won’t know how to fix the problems you are having without a philosophy.

If you can’t write down your philosophy then you still have some work to do. If you don’t have a clear view of your philosophy you will be floundering all over the place. It you win, it will be pure luck. One year you will win, it will be pure luck. One year you will run a 3-4 defense and the next year you will run a 4-3 based defense. You will never get zeroed in on what is important.

I am an example of a person who got zeroed into a philosophy early. I went to <st1:state w:st="on"><st1>:place w:st="on">Arkansas</st1>:place></st1:state> many years ago to work for Lou Holtz. Monte Kiffin was his defensive coordinator. He had just come over from <st1:state w:st="on"><st1>:place w:st="on">Nebraska</st1>:place></st1:state> to take that job. He is now of course the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is one of the best coaches that has ever lived. Under Monte I was a part time coach in the secondary at <st1:state w:st="on"><st1>:place w:st="on">Arkansas</st1>:place></st1:state>.

Monte ran what is known in coaching circles as the 4-3 under defense. That was his base defense that he had developed and perfected at <st1:state w:st="on"><st1>:place w:st="on">Nebraska</st1>:place></st1:state> as a gap control defense to stop the run and pressure the passer. That was the first time I started to get hold of something that had a philosophy to it. I started to grow with this defense. After all the years I’ve been in football I’ve never coached anything but the 4-3 under defense. So I know this defense inside and out. I know the good side of the defense and I know the problems and weaknesses of this defense. I run it with one gap principles but can also make it work with some two gap principles.

What I can give you today is a real basic understanding of this defense. I am not trying to sell this to you as being the best defense. What I am saying is that for me this is the defense that I know best and can make work. The reason I run this as a base defense is that I know how to fix any problems that may be created.

I want to start out explaining the basic front end coverage. Then we’ll go over some of the more basic blitzes we run from this coverage. When I went to the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, Monte Kiffin was there and we got together with another coach named Floyd Peters. He was from the <st1>:place w:st="on">Northern California</st1>:place> area. He played for the Cleveland Browns and had coached all over the NFL. He was one of the great pass rush specialists that has ever been. He believed as well that the 4-3 under was the best overall front to use to rush the passer.

The 4-3 under defense has evolved over the years and adjusted over time. There are some different ways to do things from it. The presentation that I am going to give today is the “one-gap” approach. In principle we want to give our players a chance to know exactly what they have to defend. We also want to give them an attitude in which to do that. We want to be an attacking, aggressive football team. We don’t want to sit and read the play like you often have to with “two-gap” principles of play. We want to attack into the gap at the snap, get off the ball to play on their side of the field and get after the quarterback.

The big problem with any “one-gap” approach however is that it allows a ball carrier to get into the secondary if one guy makes a mistake. No matter how aggressive the defense is there is a great amount of discipline that goes with this defense. You have to be very strict about your positioning and the placement of your players. You have to have the ability to maintain relative spacing between your players.
<o>
</o>When we talk about this front all gaps are lettered to give us a reference point. We letter the gaps on each side of the center as A, B, C, D, etc. We do this for the strong side and the weak side. For starters the Sam linebacker controls the D gap to his side of the field. He is in an inside-foot to outside-foot alignment on the tight end or what most coaches call a 9 technique spot. He can never get reach blocked by the tight end in this position. He is the force player for everything run to his side of the field and turns everything back inside to the pursuit.

The defensive end to the tight end side is responsible for controlling the C gap. He is an inside-foot to outside-foot alignment on the offensive tackle he is lining up against. If the tackle blocks inside then the defensive end has to close down with him in keep relative control of the C gap.

The nose tackle plays in the A gap to the tight end side of the field in our defense. We have done a number of things with this position based upon the opposition at times. We have put him right in the A gap, we have cocked him on the center at times, and as needed we have even played him in a direct shade technique right over the center at times. The way we play him on base defense is as an inside-foot to outside-foot alignment or a 1 technique on the center to the strong side of the alignment.

<o></o>The prime spot on the defense to the weak side is the B gap player. He is an inside-foot to outside-foot alignment on the offensive guard to his side. He is a 3 technique player. He has B gap control but he can’t get reached or hooked by the defense due to the way we align him. The whole scheme of this defense is predicated upon not getting hooked.
<o>
</o>The best pass rusher on the team is usually the defensive end to the open side of the field. That puts him on the quarterback’s blind side and makes him a C gap player in this defense. We often align him wider than this in order to give him a better angle of attack and allow him to play in space. We align him a yard outside of the offensive tackle most of the time. He has to play C gap run support but at the same time he is rushing the passer like it is third and ten. He has to be able to close down however if the tackle blocks down on him.

The front five players I mentioned are playing aggressive defense with their outside arms free. The only thing we can’t allow to happen is for them to get hooked or reached by the defender.

This alignment leaves open the strong side B Gap and the weak side A gap which are played by the Mike and Will linebackers. The Mike linebacker is in an inside-foot to out-side foot alignment on the offensive guard on his side of the field. The Will linebacker is aligned against the offensive guard to his side of the field. He is basically a protected player in this alignment and should make a lot of tackles. He has to control his weak-side A gap and play relative to the Mike linebacker and the Free Safety.

<o></o>The Free Safety is the force player to the open side or weak side of the ball. He works off the defensive end’s play. The Defensive End works for leverage and force. The Free Safety works off of the Defensive End and fills where he is needed on run plays for example. If we are playing Cover 3 behind him the Strong Safety is going to have the middle of the secondary behind him but also fills off the linebacker’s side as needed depending upon the play. If the Sam linebacker does get hooked for example the Strong Safety will then have to come up and make the play. The offense will obviously gain a chunk of yardage on the play, but that is because there was a breakdown at the point of attack in our scheme.
<o>
</o>The two Safeties are both fill where needed sort of players. The have to keep everything on their inside shoulder. All the players in this defense have to keep the blocks in their inside shoulder and force the ball carrier back inside to the next player. Here is an example of our base alignment against a pro set backfield with wide receivers split to either side.

4-3 UNDER DEFENSE VERSUS PRO SET

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...ervsProSet.jpg
<o></o>
If you look at this front it is basically an eight man front against the run as we’ll bring the Free Safety down hard in run situations. This is a stop the run first type of defense. We want to outnumber the offense to either side of the ball. We call this particular alignment of the front an “under” and the coverage “flex” in our language. The open side of the alignment is the flex side and the tight end side is the strong or solid side. Those are our terms for the tight end side and the split end side of the formation.

<o></o>The defense is a man to man coverage scheme for the corners in this example. If we call a cover one flex, we are man to man on the corners with the strong safety moving into the middle of the field. The Free Safety or flex side safety is down on run support. The Sam Linebacker has the tight end in man to man in coverage. He has him anywhere he goes for this defensive call. He never switches if we are in this coverage and will go with him if the tight end does go in motion.

more:

The Mike Linebacker plays the first back out of the back field to the strong side. The Free Safety plays the first back out of the back field to the weak side. The Will linebacker plays the short middle. The gives us a man in the hole in the short middle area of the field. If we get a full flow by the backs to the strong side the Mike linebacker takes the first back and the Will linebacker takes the second back out of the backfield. The Free Safety becomes the short middle player. <o:p></o:p>If it is a full flow weak side play the Free Safety has the first back and the Will linebacker has the second man to the weak side. The Mike linebacker becomes the short hole player. In theory the middle hole player helps with the tight end but in reality he is the second line of defense against any breakdown in the pass rush. They can help on the draw play, scramble by the quarterback, or screen passes that they can see developing.



<o:p></o:p>If the offense comes out in a different look such as a Twins look to one side, the basic core of the defense stays the same. There are no adjustments to be made. The defenders take their men in coverage regardless of where they line up. The Mike linebacker has help in the middle from the short hole player. However, he can’t allow himself to get beat in the flat. The play action pass is a problem for this defense. That is an area on which you really have to focus on reads and execution. That is a critical aspect you have to practice.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...dervsTwins.jpg

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Before we go any further, let’s talk about personnel. You want to get your best players on the field. The open side Defensive End has to be one of your best football players. Size does not matter as much. We want an athletic player who can move around.


<o:p></o:p>At Nose Tackle you have to find a player who likes to mix it up. We want a big guy in there who likes to get down and dirty. He is going to get doubled a lot on the run and pass and is going to get down blocked a lot. He has to be a tough player. This guy can be a short and stubby type of player.
<o:p></o:p>The other defensive tackle the 3 technique player should be your premier interior pass rusher. He is going to get a lot of one on one blocks as it is hard to double team him because of where he lines up.



<o:p></o:p>The defensive end to the tight end side needs to be a defensive player that can play the run. He does not have to be a big time pass rusher. He has to play the C gap and stop the run.



<o:p></o:p>The Mike linebacker is a traditional middle linebacker. He is instinctive and makes a lot of calls for the defense. He may be the guy with the most experience or the best feel for the game.



<o:p></o:p>The Will linebacker can be a smaller player. He is generally protected in the defensive schemes and will not see as many blocks. All you want him to do most plays is flow and chase the football. We want our fastest linebacker at this position.
<o:p></o:p>The Sam linebacker has to be a good containment player. He has to be big and strong enough to play on the edge of the tight end. He has to be able to run in pass coverage also.
<o:p></o:p>The defensive backs that are the best run defenders are our safeties. The Free Safety is another player who makes a lot of tackles for us. He has to have good instincts. He is what we call a natural player. You don’t have to coach this player too much. He has to have a feel for the everything and understand the big picture.


<o:p></o:p>The corners have to run fast if you plan on playing bump and run. If they don’t run fast then you can still play with them. But if your corners are not faster than the wide receivers you are facing don’t play bump and run. Your asking them to do something they can not do and they’ll get beat deep. It is a race when you play bump and run and if you can’t win the race don’t play bump and run.


<o:p></o:p>If you have a million reads for your secondary you are crazy. They don’t need that even at our level. All they need to know is their primary responsibility and then secondary. At the highest level in the NFL the pass game is as complex as you can imagine. However if a defender can play the post and the seam route then they can learn to play at that level. The thing that kills and breaks down a defense is a ball being thrown over the defender’s head for a touchdown.
<o:p></o:p>Teach your younger players to play the deep middle and forget about all the confusing rules. The guy who is playing in the middle of the field has to figure out who can get into the middle. We want our safety to play in the middle of the two receivers that can run the post route. He wants to split the relationship with anyone who can get down the middle.
<o:p></o:p>When we play pass defense with our corners we play as tight was we can for the match up. Against spread offenses we back them off more.



<o:p></o:p>If we get a one back or an Ace set the safeties are going to take care of it. Everything else in the defense stays the same. The Mike and Will linebackers take the back out of the backfield. If he goes to the strong side the Mike linebacker takes him. If he goes to the weak side the Will linebacker takes him. The linebacker that is not involved in coverage drops into the short middle hole on pass coverage. The Free Safety adjusts down to take the second tight end.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...UndervsAce.jpg



If the offense spreads out a bit into a double set to one side we don’t make any adjustment except to match up better with the safeties. Everything else on the defense remains the same. Everyone is playing their gap control and support schemes. If the back goes in motion to leave an empty backfield set the linebacker to the side of the motion takes him. The remaining linebacker bumps over to the middle to balance the defense and plays football.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...ervsDouble.jpg



If the offense comes out in a triples set the adjustment is made by the safeties. In this case pictured the Strong Safety goes out to cover the third receiver to the strong side. The Free Safety moves to the middle third of the field and plays the middle third. Everyone else stays the same with the linebackers playing the remaining back the same way. Trips to the other side would flop the role of the safeties. Or if one is a better cover person that the other you can protect accordingly.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...dervsTrips.jpg



For a base defense to hold up you have to have some things that you can use to complement it. When you play USC every single one of my players is going to have a blitz pattern. The offense will have to account for every player on our side of the ball in their pass protection scheme.


<o:p></o:p>The next thing that I am going to show you are some of the most basic combinations of pass rushes that we use with the under defensive front. I want it to be multiple so that the defense doesn’t know who is coming and from where.


<o:p></o:p>The first blitz that I am going to show you is what we simply refer to as “Sam and Mike”. We are going to use the strong side linebacker and middle linebackers to rush the passer. We slant our strong side defensive end, nose guard, and 3 technique to the open side of their formation away from their normal rush gaps. The weak side defensive end is going to drop into pass coverage on this play. The alignment is the same as before. The Corners are line up in tight coverage but are going to bail out and play a three deep zone coverage with the Free Safety. The Corners will play outside leverage on this blitz and force everything inside. The Free Safety is playing a deep middle. The weak side Defense End and Strong Safety are the outside defenders to each side. They are playing seam coverage with the Will linebacker in the middle seam. The Strong Safety and weak side Defensive End play what we call the hot receivers to their side. Once the quarterback sees the blitz he’ll often throw to these short areas to his designated hot receiver. If the tight end comes down the middle seam the Strong Safety collapses on him. The Defensive End does the same thing with the back out of the backfield.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...dMikeBlitz.jpg



The Will linebacker is playing the hot receiver to the middle of the field. That means he is finding the third receiver and covering him if he comes out on a hot route. When we overload on the rush the ball with be thrown quickly. We want good spacing in our coverage people so we can react by changing up, and make the play for a short gain.



<o:p></o:p>The formation doesn’t matter much. We have to find the hot receivers on this blitz and identify them. Another advantage the defense has in these types of stunts is the change up of the line. The defensive line is now slanting away from where they have been playing the entire game. That changes the landmark for the offensive lineman and gives the defensive lineman an advantage in his pass rush. The defense has to have counter moves to the keep the offense off balance.
<o:p></o:p>This stunt can also be used in run defense. To give us a change up we bring the Sam linebacker underneath the tight ends block. We can also let the Sam linebacker play under all the blocks and bounce plays to the outside. Those are changes we add to the base defense to keep the offense off balance.


<o:p></o:p>Another way to get five man pressure on the quarterback is our Under Safety blitz. On this stunt we are bringing the Free Safety from the outside. The defensive line is slanting away from his blitz. The corners are playing their same bail

coverage and the Strong Safety is going to the deep middle.



The Sam and Will linebackers have the first two hot receivers and the Mike with have the hot third receiver.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...afetyBlitz.jpg



A very effective stunt from this defense is called “Sam and Safety”. On this stunt we are blitzing with both the Sam and the Free Safety. The defense line slants to the Free Safety side. The open side Defensive End comes off in coverage and everything else is the same. The Mike linebacker and the drop end have the first two hot receivers and the Will linebacker has the third.
http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...afetyBlitz.jpg

One of the problems we have when we drop the Defensive End in coverage is containment to his side. When we drop the end it means the 3 Technique tackle has to work hard to contain outside. That is not a good situation but we work hard to make it work.



We also like to bring the defensive backs in the blitz scheme. If they can disguise the stunt they can get there in a hurry. We like to bring the Corner on a blitz as a change up from time to time. The Corner aligns in a bump and run technique. On the snap of the ball however he comes hard off the corner. The Free Safety cheats back and covers the deep outside third. The Strong Safety is covering the middle third and the strong side corner in this case is taking the outside third to his side. The rush end and the 3 technique rush the A gap and the B gap. The corner comes off the edge.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...ornerBlitz.jpg


The Sam, Mike, and Will linebackers play the hot zones on this play. You can mix up your blitzes according to your needs. This simplistic blitz scheme lets you bring pressure from a number of different areas. You can game plan the match ups the way you want with other combination as well. The important thing in this blitz pattern is that we are not changing anything in our basic schemes underneath.
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I just think the team will do things differently. No one on the D was sucsessful last season and depending on the philosofy of the coaches this will change one way or another

I'd feel alot more confident of that if it was Crennel leading the defense instead of Pendergast.

Isn't it spelled Crikey? :shrug: ;)

Cripes, cripey, crikey - they're all euphemisms for "Christ!" (which is impolite and stronger than I intended).

All this arguing back and forth on what scheme we are going to play. This team had big holes last year. No matter what we do, holes are likely still going to exist. Pendergast is going to need to find out where those holes will be and try to minimize them hoping the opposition won't find those holes. They are bound to find them though. What we need to have as a goal is to get our players that will be with us on the right page. Our young players have just never gotten it. That needs to change.

bump

I always read these posts about AZ D talent, and shake my head. Do they have more than us. Yeah, but not by much, and they surely aren't loaded with talent. They have some guys that had big names coming out of college, but they never really did jack.