It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into American football strategy. (Discuss)

In order for coaches and players of American football (and, with the necessary modifications for adding a twelfth player, Canadian Football) to exchange information in a rapid manner during practices and games, a more or less standard terminology for defensive schemes has been developed. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... It has been suggested that American football defensive schemes be merged into this article or section. ... United States simply as football, is a competitive team sport that is both fast-paced and strategic. ... Canadian football is a sport in which two teams of twelve players each compete for territorial control of a field of play 110 yards (100. ...

Basic alignments

Players on the defensive side of the ball are generally split between down linemen (tackles, defensive ends and nose guards), linebackers, and defensive backs (safeties and cornerbacks). To describe the basic defensive alignment of linemen, linebackers and backs, the number of down linemen is usually followed by the number of linebackers. By far the most common alignments are four down linemen and three linebackers (4-3), but alignments with three down linemen and four linebackers (3-4) are currently used by a number of teams. The number of defensive backs is usually not mentioned (as it is, for example, in describing soccer alignments). For other uses of the term, please see the Lineman article. ... Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. ... Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American football. ... Nose Guard is a position in american football. ... The defensive team or defense in American football or Canadian football, is the team that begins a play from scrimmage not in possession of the ball. ... Defensive back (DB) is a player in American football whose role is primarily pass coverage; that is, the defensive back will stay near a receiver and try to deflect or intercept any passes thrown to him. ... Warning signs, such as this one, can improve safety awareness. ... Defensive back (DB) is a player in American football whose role is primarily pass coverage; that is, the defensive back will stay near a receiver and try to deflect or intercept any passes thrown to him. ... Football is a ball game played between two teams of eleven players, each attempting to win by scoring more goals than their opponent. ...

However, on plays where the defense expects the offense to pass, emphasis is often placed on the number of defensive backs. When one of the "front seven" (down linemen and linebackers) is removed in favour of a defensive back, the five defensive backs are described as a "nickel" package. When a sixth defensive back is inserted, it is known as a "dime" package.

Unusual defensive alignments are rare, but often successful. In Super Bowl XXV, the New York Giants played with only two down linemen, with four linebackers and five defensive backs. The strategy was very successful in preventing the Buffalo Bills from completing long passes, but it allowed over 190 yards in rushing. Nevertheless, the Giants won. Another example is the New England Patriots using no down lineman and seven linebackers for two plays against the Miami Dolphins during a Monday Night game in 2004. Date January 27, 1991 Stadium Tampa Stadium City Tampa, Florida MVP Ottis Anderson, Running back Favorite Bills by 6 National Anthem Whitney Houston Coin toss Pete Rozelle Halftime show New Kids on the Block Attendance 73,813 TV in the United States Network ABC Announcers Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, and... Year Founded 1925 Conference NFC Division East Home Field Giants Stadium City East Rutherford, New Jersey Team Colors Royal Blue, Red, Gray, and White Head Coach Tom Coughlin League Titles League Championships (6) NFL Champions: 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956 Super Bowl: 1986 (XXI), 1990 (XXV) Conference Championships (9) NFL Eastern... Year Founded 1960 Conference AFC Division East Home Field Ralph Wilson Stadium (formerly Rich Stadium) City Buffalo, New York Team Colors Dark Navy, Red, Royal, Nickel, and White Head Coach Mike Mularkey League Titles League Championships (0) AFL Champions: 1964, 1965 Conference Championships (4) AFC: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 Division... In real-time strategy (RTS) and team-based first-person shooter (FPS) computer games, a rush is a fast attack at the beginning of the game. ... Year Founded 1960 Conference AFC Division East Home Field Gillette Stadium City Foxborough, Massachusetts Team Colors Blue, Red, Silver, and White Head Coach Bill Belichick League Titles League Championships (3) Super Bowl: 2001 (XXXVI), 2003 (XXXVIII), 2004 (XXXIX) Conference Championships (5) AFC: 1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004 Division Championships (9... Year Founded 1966 Conference AFC Division East Home Field Dolphins Stadium City Miami, Florida Team Colors Aqua Green, Coral Orange, Blue, and White Head Coach Nick Saban League Titles League Championships (2) Super Bowl: 1972 (VII), 1973 (VIII) Conference Championships (5) AFC: 1971, 1972, 1973, 1982, 1984 Division Championships (12...

Basic pass coverage

Even in obvious running situations, the defense must be able to account for the eligible receivers on offense. There are two general schemes for defending against the pass: Look up Pass on Wiktionary, the free dictionary For the Proof of Age Standards Scheme, see PASS. A pass (as a noun) can refer to: a mountain pass, a low place in a mountain range allowing easier passage a strait or passage, usually used of one that is very narrow...

• Man-to-man, where each eligible receiver is covered by a defensive back or a linebacker.
• Zone, where each linebacker and defensive back is assigned an area on the field which they are to cover.

In most cases, man-to-man coverage is more effective against short passes, while zone coverage is effective against long passes.

Advanced pass coverage

To create a shorthand, most defensive schemes use the term "cover" (for pass coverage) and a number to describe a combination of schemes. As in American Football there are only five eligible pass receivers on a given play (technically the quarterback is also an eligible receiver, but passes to the quarterback, though known, are rare) while there are at least seven pass defenders in 3-4 alignment in man-to-man defence, some of the pass coverage personnel may either blitz (cross the line of scrimmage with the down linemen in an attempt to sack the quarterback), provide double coverage on a receiver, or help other defensive players with the pass coverage. In zone coverage, all defensive linebackers and backs have a pass coverage assignment. In American Football and Canadian Football, not all players on offence are entitled to receive a forward pass. ... The quarterback is a position in the offensive backfield of American and Canadian football, directly behind players of the line. He is generally the leader of the offensive team when it is on the field, responsible for initiating play by receiving the snap of the ball from the center. ... Blitz, the German word for lightning, and often used figuratively as in blitzschnell (as fast as lightning), may mean any of a number of things in English: Blitz (NFL Mascot), the mascot of the NFLs Seattle Seahawks Blitzkrieg, the lightning war strategy of WWII Germany The Blitz, the German...

• Cover Zero - Strict man-to-man coverage with no help from free safeties (usually a blitz play with at least five men crossing the line of scrimmage)
• Cover One - Man-to-man coverage with at least one safety not assigned a player to cover who can help out on deep pass routes.
• Cover Two - Zone coverage with the safeties playing deep and covering half the field each.
• Cover Three - Zone coverage as above, only with extra help from a cornerback, so that each player covers one-third of a deep zone.
• Cover Four - As above, with the corners and safeties dropping into deep coverage, with each taking one-fourth of the width of the field.

Generally speaking, the effectiveness of a defense against short passes and the run drops as it goes from Cover Zero to Cover Four, but their effectiveness against deep passes increases.

Other Coverages

Bracket: A Double team scheme to take away a certain receiever. There are two types of Bracket coverage: High/Low & In/Out.

High/Low coverage involves one defensive player staying between the line of scrimmage and the receiver, protecting against short routes, and another player behind the receiver to protect from deep routes.

There are numerous ways to beat this coverage with skilled personnel, however, based on running a route that breaks to the inside. On an "in" route the receiver would make a ~90 degree turn to the inside of the field and use his speed to separate from the underneath defensive back. A higher difficulty option is the "post, or "skinny post", route, which involves a turn of ~30-60 degrees to the inside. The receiver again uses his speed to separate from the underneath defender, and the quarterback must deliver the ball over the underneath defender and far enough inside that the defender protecting against deep passes can not come down/across the flight path of the ball and deflect or intercept it. Though the difficulty on this pass is much higher, it can be used to gain many more yards.

In/Out coverage works just as it sounds, with one defender protecting against routes run to the inside and another protecting against routes to the outside. The easiest way to beat this coverage is a simple go/streak route: the receiver simply sprints down the field past the defenders. Any hesitation on the defenders' part to drop their coverage assignment and run with the streaking receiver can be exploited.

Zone Blitz: A defensive stunt where a LB or DB Blitzes and a Defensive Linemen replaces the LB or DB in Coverage. The creation and refinement of this scheme is most often credited to Dick LeBeau, defensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Richard Dick LeBeau is a former football player and is presently the Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator. ... Year Founded 1933 Conference AFC Division North Home Field Heinz Field City Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Team Colors Black and Gold Head Coach Bill Cowher League Titles League Championships (4) Super Bowl: 1974 (IX), 1975 (X), 1978 (XIII), 1979 (XIV) Conference Championships (5) AFC: 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1995 Division Championships (17...

Strategy

Effective defense depends on co-operation from defensive players and an understanding of what coverage they are in. For example, in Cover Two, the cornerbacks must be careful to jam the wide receivers at the line of scrimmage so that they cannot run deep too quickly. Moreover, if the receivers do break deep, the cornerback must drop back to ensure that the safeties are not spread too wide, leaving a hole between them. In Cover One, the safety must be aware that one of the cornerbacks could have difficulty covering a wide receiver, and must be available to move over to help the cornerback before the quarterback can throw. In American and Canadian football the line of scrimmage is the imaginary transverse line crossing the football field across its narrower dimension, which passes through the last position of the football, after the end of the most recent play and following the assessment of any penalty yards. ...

Moreover, mixing up defensive alignments, and not being predictable, are important as if an offense recognizes an alignment or coverage scheme, or a tendency to use such a scheme, they can often take advantage of it. For example, if the defense is blitzing, and the quarterback forsees it (for example, one of the blitzing players moves towards the line of scrimmage before the snap) the quarterback knows that it is man-to-man coverage and will look for his fastest receiver to get open, or throw to the spot that is vacated by the blitzing player.

Special Cases

In the modern game, with players getting faster and stronger, defensive coordinators often look to a player's special skills in order to surprise the offense. For example, in some defensive schemes, defensive down linemen are given pass coverage responsibility. Since Lawrence Taylor demonstrated the effect of a single blitzing linebacker on an offensive line's blocking scheme, most teams now rush three down linemen and a single linebacker (often a different one on every play), a strategy that was almost unknown before he started to play. Moreover, even defensive backs are being given more responsibility on running plays. For example, on plays where a running back runs wide, it is the responsibility of the cornerback to ensure that the running back does not get directly to the sideline, and that the back is forced to run in front of the cornerback where there is more likely to be help from linebackers. A defensive coordinator typically refers to a coach on a football team in the National Football League (or at other levels of American football) who is in charge of the defense. ... Lawrence Julius Taylor (born February 4, 1959, in Williamsburg, Virginia) is a retired Hall of Fame American football player. ... High school running back A running back, halfback or tailback is the position of a player on an American and Canadian football team who lines up in the offensive backfield. ... The sidelines is a term commonly used to define the white/colored lines which mark the outer-boundaries of a gaming field. ...

Modern offenses have adapted to these strategies, and often require different skills from players, particularly running backs who, in addition to running with the ball, are expected to run deep pass routes against linebacker coverage, and to be available to block blitzing players on pass plays.

See also

• American football strategy