Defensive Strategy
Football calls for many different defensive strategies in a
game. The offense decides on a play and the defense tries to
counter with a way to stop the play. It is like a chess match,
each team trying to out wit the other. Watching how teams try to
stop a play is what coaching defense is all about. What plays are
chosen and against what offensive formations are all part of the
defensive and coaching strategy.
Defensive strategies:
- Base Defense. This is
when the defense sets in their basic or normal set. The defensive coordinator
calls different plays from this set. He can call for
linemen to rush differently, linebackers where to go and
what pass defense to run. Examples
- Run prevent. This is
a way the defense uses extra linemen to stop the run. The
defense expects running plays and commits players to the
run. A team faces an opponent that runs the ball alot
will use this style. Examples.
- Pass prevent.
Defenses expect a team to pass. Many times near the end
of the game if the offensive team needs to score quickly
they will pass on every down. Defenses like to use this prevent style
which includes extra defensive backs.
- Zone Pass Defense.
This is a pass defense where the defensive backs go to a
zone or area on the field. They cover the player that
comes into the zone. Examples.
- Zone blitz. This is a
new style of defense. Defenses use a zone blitz to trick the offense
on how they will play the pass and who is going to blitz.
- Play calling. Setting
up the offense in a certain formation does not mean they
will pass or run. Teams have many different plays for
each formation. The offensive coaches try to make the
defensive coaches guess what play is going to be run.
Teams have scouted
their opponents and look for tendencies in their play calling and
what they do in certain situations. For example if a team always
passes on second and ten, then the defensive coaches would call a
pass defense. Each defensive segment coach scouts their opponent
to look for ways of beating them in a specific defense. The line coach watch's for
the way the offensive line blocks. The linebacker watches the
quarterback and running backs how they move and where they run.
The secondary coach
watches the receivers and the patterns they run. All the coaches
then meet as a staff and report their findings to the defensive
coordinator. Then they come up with the game plan for the
opponent.
Scouting plan example
Game plan example