Cover-2After much experiencing, I’ve come to the conclusion that much can be gained by introducing a zone cover in younger football leagues to accomodate the limited passing abilities of the young quarterback.

The idea comes from the phrase “Rush a good quarterback, cover a poor quarterback”. Most young quarterback, although with a descent arm, have a tendensy to avoid reading the defensive alignment and keeps looking for the open receiver. This is something a defense can exploit for big turnover possibilities.

By playing the cover-2 zone defense, all defensive secondaries will have their eyes on the ball, reacting to the throw more than the movement of the receiver.
The first thing a defensive coach needs to do is to teach it’s corners how to play the outside alignment. Although textbook says square shoulders to the line of scrimmage, many coaches prefer diagonal shoulders facing the the widre receiver. This way the corner can keep both the receiver and quarterback in the same view. From that point on, following happens:

Cornerbacks:

  • Let the cornerback attack the middle of the receivers upper body to give a “bump”. Don’t be afraid to give some force to it. If the corner knocks the receiver off balance, the better.
  • The cornernback then lets the receiver release, looks for a 2nd receiver about to enter his zone.
  • If no receiver enters the zone he’s responsible for, and the cornerback does not identify any run, he drops and rushes after the receiver, still keeping an eye for the quarterback

The safeties are just as important in the cover-2 scheme as the cornerbacks. They split the field between them, covering each half. The safeties should mirror the quarterbacks movements this way:

  • If the quarterback drops, the safeties drop, still eyes on the quarterback
  • If the quarterback turns to a side, the safeties slide (still shoulders squared to the line of scrimmage) to that side
  • If the quarterback goes forward (sneak), well, heck, go get’im tiger! NO play-action fakes EVER comes from a sneak!

After this, if the safeties identifies the pass, the safeties should look for the release angle of the outmost receiver at his side. If this player is coming down the field fast, the safety should turn and go with him and maintain a deeper position. Keep in mind that the cornerback should be behind the receiver at this instant, keeping him covered both in front and back.

Now, the matter of fact is that the safety shouldn’t need to drop very far, since the range of younger quarterbacks is fairly limited. And if the ball goes far, the hang-time will increase as well, giving the secondaries time to react.

An interesting point of all this is that you can change the way you look at a cornerback completely. Too often I see in younger leagues that the smallest, freshest and most insecure player is often positioned at cornerback to “keep him out of harms way”. If the offense has a half-descent quarterback and an offensive line that can hold for more than 2,5 seconds, they should be able to exploit this. Instead, with the cover-2, substitute the small cornerbacks with larger, almost linebacker, players. Teach and reteach them in practice to give a real good bump to the receiver that will knock him off his feet (nothing is more certain to kill a pass than a knocked over receier). Secondly, a stronger cornerback with his eyes on the offensive backfield will be a much greater run-support player than a smaller cornerback chasing downfield after a receiver on a run-play.

Now, put your smaller, fresher, players on the safety spot. Teach them to mirror the quarterback, drop and look for the ball. (If the get the ball, and you’re really uncertain about the kid, make sure you tell him to catch the ball, fall to the ground and he will be the hero of the day!).

Then, some FAQ:

Q: If I play a two-safety formation, I take away run stopping power in a run-dominated league!

A: No, you don’t. Keep your better run-stoppers at cornerbacks. They’re in a great position to stop the run! Move your safeties to a 7-8 yard depth (instead of 10-12) to get them into the running game faster and still have a leverage on the receivers. This way you actually get two additional outside linebackers!

Q: The zone defense is harder to understand than the man-man coverage

A: Bullsh… All it takes is 1) bump the receiver / TE, cover your ground if threatened and run (like hell) for the ball when released from the quarterback!

Q: If I depend on the zone scheme, I reduce my ability to do stunt plays!

A: Nope. Not at this level. Notice that I haven’t talked about the front 7even at all (DL’s and LB’s). That’s because you can do whatever you want with them! In fact, I would probably recommend letting your outside linebackers keep an eye on the #2 receivers at each side (TE or RB) while letting the inside linebackers rush the passer when identified.

Q: Have you ever tried this?

A: Yes, I have. With great results. Even in a 9-man game! We had more interceptions than the opponent had receptions. The trick is to let him see the open receiver, while the safety comes in to “steal” the ball. We won the game 42-12.