PRE-READING THE DEFENSE

Question
Coach I am getting into coaching and I want to coach on the offense side of the ball. I am constructing my playbook, heavily consintrating on passing. I want to run numerous routes out of very similar formations. I am going to give a lot of flexibility to the quaterback and his eye off of his pre snap read. My question is i need help pre snap reading defense. Reading a cover 2 man to a cover 2 zone. I am going to base the base d off a 4-3. But can you give me some help on some give aways that the secondary or linebackers will give that will give me a better hint of what defenes there in.

Answer
Hi JP,
The pre-snap read is not that difficult to master. Look at the deep safeties;

One safety equals cover 1.
Two safeties equals cover 2.
Three safeties equals cover 3.

If you want to know if they are using man or zone just place a man in motion just before the snap of the football. If a defender follows the motion man all the way across the formation the defense is covering man to man and a blitz is coming.

If nobody follows the motion man across the formation the defense is using a zone.

By the time a quarterback hits the football field he must have a list of coverages that his opponents like to run, sorted by down and distance.

The best way to do this is by reading the corners in the game film. Corners are the quarterback's best friends, when it comes to giving the most tips to the coverage. Here are a few simple reads for the quarterback; Study the corner back, look to see if he is eyeing the receiver or the quarterback.

If the corner-back is eyeing the receiver he is playing him man to man.

If the corner-back is eyeing the quarterback he is in a zone.

If the corner-back is line-up outside the receiver he is in a zone.

If he is line-up inside the receiver he is playing him man to man.
If he is line-up in a low focus position he is playing man to man.

If the corner-back is standing tall he is playing zone.

IF HE IS LINE-UP INSIDE AND LOOKING INTO THE LINE OF SCRIMMAGE HE IS COMING ON SOME KIND OF STUNT. Make sure you have someone pick him up or he is going to take the quarterback抯 head off.

I hope you put all these tips to good use. If you need anymore help please let me know.
Your friend, Coach Louis


PS You might want to keep this in-mind, the use of multiple formations can keep the defense off-balance and make it difficult for them to blitz or mix-up their zone and man coverages. Just something to think about.