If you've decided to simplify your defense with a spot drop coverage, you're probably looking at how to play cover 3 vs 4 verticals. Coaches are realizing the value of the spot drop cover 3's simplicity but offensive coaches are licking their chops to attack it, too.
This week's episode of the JDFB Quick Clinic looks at key points for coaching the deep third defenders. From the basics of Cover 3 alignment and the zone turn, to the much more difficult question of how to stop those 4 vertical attacks.
Critical Free Safety Coaching Points for Cover 3 vs 4 Verticals
The Free Safety is by far the most critical part of how your defense will handle 4 verticals with any 1-high safety coverage. He's got to be patient and stay centered or the Quarterback will take advantage when he picks a side. Most QBs are taught to look off the Free Safety to attack the seams.
Along with staying in his peddle and not getting drawn to a side early, he needs to also key the Quarterback to see the ball come out of his hand. Good Free Safeties need to cover from hash to hash to give your Cover 3 maximum effectiveness against 4 verticals.
Couple that importance with his critical role as the alley defender in your run fits. Your Free Safety should always be the best athlete on the football team. One thing that's remained consistent is that the quality of the Free Safety will dictate just how good your defense can be. You can't hide this guy.
Coaching Cover 3 Cornerbacks
High School coaches usually try to hide a guy at Corner. They aren't directly involved in your run fits, so they don't need to be a great tackler. And he's the farther defender away from the Quarterback, so the throws tend to be lower percentage. Even in routes on air drills.
To maximize the ability of the cornerback, and get any real help from your Cover 3 vs. 4 verticals, you've got to keep his coaching simple. The ASKA for Cornerbacks is detailed but not complicated.
Corners always want to force the Quarterback to throw outside of them. Because it's a longer throw, he's got plenty of time to react and squeeze the go route. He's also got sideline help to the outside. If he can force the Quarterback to overthrow the ball or throw it too far outside, it's an incompletion every time.
Listen to this episode of the JDFB Quick Clinic to find out the extremely important coaching point I learned from a Kirby Smart clinic talk about a decade ago. It's the most important teaching point for corners in Cover 3 vs 4 verticals that I've heard.
Do you have a question for the JDFB Quick Clinic? Send your questions by email to joe@joedanielfootball.com or message me on Twitter @footballinfo.
When you see that big time coordinator on the sidelines covering his face with that football play call sheet, it's pretty exciting. You think that's just what a football coach is supposed to look like. What you need to have in your hand on game day to be official.
This week's JDFB Quick Clinic takes a look at those offensive and defensive call sheets. What needs to be on your call sheet? And do you even need one in your hands?
Do You Need a Football Play Call Sheet?
Before you start downloading templates and filling out every call in your playbook, take some time to consider if you even need a play call sheet. If you can't remember your play calls, do you have too much?
The Coach Simple, Play Fast, Win philosophy does not rely on a big playbook. You aren't trying to win a chess match. You're putting the faith in your athletes to execute on the field on game day. You keep the play calls simple so that your players are confident in what they're being asked to do, so that they can play at a high level on game day. The play calls aren't the secret sauce.
But, you probably do need a call sheet. Especially at first. When you start using a new coaching system, it can be hard to keep it all straight in your head. Even if the calls are simple. And if you're going to be using wrist bands for your calls, you might need a play call sheet just as a reference to those calls on the wrist band.
What Needs to Be on Your Call Sheet?
You've made the decision. At least for starters, you need to have a call sheet in your hand on the sidelines. Who knows how long you'll need it. There's a good chance you won't look at it much after the 1st Quarter. At least, not for actual play call advice. It's nice to have if you just freeze up in that regard but you'll find you get into the flow of the game most of the time.
Play call sheets are simple, You can google up football play call sheets and find plenty of templates. I've used a few as a foundation, but eventually they evolve into what I really need. The few call sheets I've made in recent years start as a very, very basic Excel spreadsheet.
In this episode of the JDFB Quick Clinic, I'll go into exactly what goes on that spreadsheet at the start. Then we'll look at how that spreadsheet evolves over time.
By the way, if you're going to be a football coach for long, you probably need to get pretty good with spreadsheets. They're a great tool for making everything from call sheets, to practice plans and equipment inventory.
There's a special challenge for linebackers in defending jet sweep motion. When they see it, they forget everything they've been taught and start chasing the shiny object. The Jet Sweep run play is a lot more dangerous because of what it does to your defenders, than it is as an actual yardage gainer.
This week's JDFB Quick Clinic focuses on how to adjust to Jet Sweep motion. It doesn't matter what defensive front you're running, because your defensive front shouldn't be the ones trying to stop the jet sweep. This is more about your coverage.
Threats from Jet Sweep Motion
There are more threats from the jet sweep motion than just the jet sweep itself. Your plan for defending the motion starts with knowing the biggest threats it creates for your defense.
Along with the jet sweep, you need to be ready for plays that can attack your defensive front. Those include the Jet Read variation of Power Read, and any inside run game where the jet sweep motion is just being used as window dressing.
You'll also need to be ready for passing concepts that use the flat route that is usually run by the sweeper. Concepts like Curl-Flat, Slant-Arrow or any number of 3x1 passing concepts will threaten your coverage. And there's always the possibility of an RPO to the sweeper if your force defender loses his leverage.
How to Adjust Your Defense
The adjustments for defending jet sweep motion all start with an understanding of run fits. You need to know how the umbrella works. Check out my article on Umbrella Principle run fits to learn the simplest way to get your players to understand their role in stopping the run.
Spill defenders under the umbrella must stay focused on their key reads. Nothing about the jet sweep will hurt you as bad as having linebackers and defensive ends jumping outside at the sight of motion. Then you're trying to stop Inside Zone with 4 or 5 spill defenders left.
The jet sweep is handled by your force defender and the alley defender. They need to be ready to shut it down.
Start with your force defender. Pull the alignment lever to get him wide enough to stop the sweep. Don't forget that he'll need to maintain that width in case of RPO's to the sweeper after the initial mesh.
You can also roll an alley defender over. When moving from double formations to Trips with the jet sweep, I always want to 'Check Roll' to a 1/4, 1/4, 1/2 coverage. That way you get your alley defender in better position to come down and help out on the play.
For all the details on how to defend jet sweep motion, check out this week's podcast below!
Get the best Offensive Line Drills so you get the best performance out of your Offensive Linemen. Your practice time is too limited to run hundreds of different drills. What drills should actually run?
Over the past couple years, since turning to the 90 Minute Practice Plan, I've had to really examine just which Offensive Line drills were worth what little practice time we had to work.
80/20 for Offensive Line Drills
Enter the Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 Rule. Just in case you don't already know it, the Pareto Principle says that 20% of the work you put in produces 80% of the results. That's critical for football coaches to understand. Out of all those cool drills and gimmicks you see at clinics and in catalogs, only 20% are really worth doing.
This episode of the JDFB Quick Clinic looks at applying the Pareto Principle to your Offensive Line Drills. I always hear coaches complaining about how little individual time they have to work with their guys. Or just practice time in general. You're probably better off trying to work within those limitations - as long as you know what to run. This episode helps you figure that out.
Offensive Line Drills to Make Sure You Never Miss a Block
We take a look at what really matters for your Offensive Linemen to make the block. It's all about the first two steps. Not how quick they are, or how long or short they are. In fact, what matters is the angle. Take the right first two steps, with the right angle, and you never miss a block. Of course, if you make him hold that block too long, he might get his tail whipped. That comes down to play design and execution by the skill guys. But he won't miss the block.
Spend over half your Offensive Line drill time on the first two steps. I'll share some simple drill concepts that you can use in your Offensive Line individual periods to get this done. They don't require any contact, either. Do you have a couple of veteran leaders on your Offensive Line? Then let them run these drills in pre-practice or during the off-season.
Spend the rest of your drill time actually blocking someone. But we do a lot of 'Pro Wrestling' in those drills, too. That means there's a pre-determined winner. But it should look very real. These are 1 on 1 drills and 2 on 2 combo blocks for your zone game. Throw in some Pass Protection 1 on 1 and you've got a complete practice.
Waste Less Practice Time
The only other step you'll need is getting your guys to finish blocks. It involves a simple drill you can work for a couple of minutes during special teams... and a chicken sandwich. The true difference maker.
Use the player below to listen to Episode 220 of the JDFB Quick Clinic to hear all about building your Offensive Line practice around these drills and creating better blocking with less wasted hours on the practice field. Then your guys will have more energy for the long season ahead!