A LARGE PART of successful pass defense is the pass rush you’re able to generate from your defensive line. Likewise, a pivotal aspect of a good run defense is what support you get from your secondary.

Our defensive coaching staff tries to emphasize how each player’s responsibility is important on every play — run or pass. Our primary defensive objective is to stop the run, with a team goal of holding our opponents to 3.5 yards a carry or less.

When we look at implementing a coverage, we first look at how it will help us stop the run, and then we’ll analyze how it will defend the pass.

We tell our defensive players that one of four things can happen when we force our opponents to pass — and three of those things are bad for the opponent.

-    Completion. This happens only 45-percent or less of the time.
-    Incompletion.
-    Interception. Over the last few seasons our team intercepts about 1 out of 8 pass attempts (with a high of 22 in one year).
-    Sack.

Coverage Goals
We want to force opposing offenses to pass and make them pay when they do. We’ll use what we call “ghost” on every play to confuse the offense as much as possible. We’ll use a variety of looks such as “man press,” “loose man,” “bail” and we’ll have the defenders confuse the QB with their eyes as well.

It’s important that DBs communicate on every down — not only the coverage and formation but option responsibilities as well. The man who is responsible for the pitch is also defender who is responsible for containment. They must also try to turn all outside running plays back toward the pursuit of the rest of the defense.

Our team uses both man and zone coverages. But in zone, we will not just drop to a spot on the field. (Teams never move the ball by completing a pass to the grass). The theory is that “We will not cover grass — we will cover receivers and read routes.”

Disguising Coverages

We use six coverages with our two base defenses (4-4 and 5-2), a Cover 0, Cover 1, Cover 2, Cover 3,

Cover 4 and Invert.

We disguise these coverages on every down by using a variety of techniques. For example, we’ll try confusing the QB during his pre-snap reads. Confusion causes lack of confidence and indecision.
All of our DBs must go through 5 pre-snap reads prior to the snap. The DB’s reads are:

1.    The defense that’s been called.

2.    The down and distance.

3.    If they recognize the offensive formation, they must call it out.

4.    Locate all potential receivers, including the location of the
best WR.

5.    The alignment of the WRs.