6 man Zone Pressure: 2 under 3 deep coverage NFL and College, Pitt Clemson, Syracuse and More!
6 man pressures with 2 under 3 deep coverage
One of the new trends in football is sending 6 and playing 2 under 3 deep coverage. Its aggressive and pre snap loks like traditional match quarters or cover 2. Easy to disguise and excellent to use in long passing situations.
This is different from the old style of sending 6 and playing man coverage. Im not saying you need to get rid of man to man all together but, sending 6 and playing zone is an option.
Let's evaluate the difference between 2 under 3 deep and cover 0.
Advantages in 2 under 3 deep:
1. The advantage in this is in the disguise. You aren't showing cover 0 where you have to move your safeties over vs 3-1 and tell the whole world you are coming.
2. You also can really bring pressure and use this as a good 3rd and long defense. Why sit back and play cover 4 when you can bring 6 play the seams and really to the short stuff.
3. These blitzes and coverages can be out of 3-2 , 4-2 and any other fronts. You can bring any 6 man pressure you want.
Traditional 6 man cover 0 pressures have certain flaws.
Weaknesses of playing cover 0(man to man) when sending 6.
1. 3x1 because you really lose the disguise. Tips off the offense and gives easy read for qb
2. Free safety has a long way to run vs 3x1 and makes it very difficult to get there.
3. players turn and run and create running lanes. At times you end up with 2 guys blocking 1 because they are running with wr and eyes are not on the football. Heres an example below.
The Godfather of the 2 under 3 deep is Pat Narduzzi. He has been running it back to his days at Michigan State. Rarely does a game go by when he doesn't run the scheme.
2021 Colts vs Bills week 11
The Colts ran it 3 times vs the Bills and were efficient on 2 with a big interception and also had great coverage the 3rd time but Allen scrambled for 8 yards in their 41-15 win week 11. The coverage definitely confused Josh Allen. The video clips are below
#1 Odd 6 man pressure with the LB looping to contain rush. The Bills try to run 2 vertical routes with a post and the Colts are sitting on it. Allen forced to run.
#2 2nd and 7
Double Edge pressure but the LB loses his contain and Allen scrambles for 8
The Blitz was not successful because the LB left his rush lane. Gave Allen an opening for 6 yards to run.
#3. Same blitz as #1 great coverage and a nice interception. Blitz gets home late and Allen is hit as he throws.Here is the blitz you saw earlier. 2 under 3 deep. Great coverage as they try to hit Diggs on a 20 yard comeback. Great coverage and break on the ball.
2020 Pitt vs Louisville
2nd and 9
Pressure double edge with both outside LB
Result: Throw hot to RB -2 yard loss
Here's the beauty of it: Sometimes the coverage may not be perfect but the pressure often can cause a bad throw and incompletion. Here's a perfect example as Lousville calls good route beaters but the pressure gets home before the QB can get set and throw the football. He is forced to throw early and incomplete.
2nd and 10
Louisville goes condensed and Narduzzi brings the boundary corner and will LB
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| Pat Narduzzi, 2 under 3 deep |
The Pitt Panthers run some very good 6 man pressures vs Delaware. They bring the cb and will on the first snap and run their 2 under 3 deep. You can see some of the other clips in the Delaware game. You will see other clips with different blitzes but the first one is shown below.
Please understand every 6 man pressure has 2 underneath defenders and a 3 deep secondary. Clips below.
Pitt Defense vs Clemson Offense
2 clips below from 2018
Example #1 They bring the boundary cb and 2 lb from the weak side.
Example #2 They bring the safety and 2 lb from the weak side.
Pitt Panthers vs NC State Offense
Here they bring the cb and will off the edge. NC State sees it and makes a nice adjustment and completion for 7 yards.
Michigan State 2014
Narduzzi when he was still the dc at Mich State.
Narduzzi runs a sam mike pressure to the 3x1 side.
They anticipate the slide and get 2 off the edge with the DE and the Sam. The mike is taken by the offensive tackle giving the advantage.
On 1st and 10 they use it as a run defense.
The Ohio State goes 3x1 to the field. State runs a double dog inside blitz and brings the free safety down as the pouch defender. Ends up being a free run defender. Makes the tackle for a short 4 yard gain, Nice design by Narduzzi and a nice pickup by the ohio state off line.
Here are a few clips of the 2 under 3 deep blitzes discussed above.
Notre Dame defense vs Alabama
Notre Dame runs a sam mike pressure Great design, as the tide is 4 man slide protection. But Mac jones eludes it avoids the sack and gets a 4 yard completion.
Syracuse 2 under 3 deep pressure.
Syracuse running double ilb pressure with 2 under 3 deep principles. Good scheme and design.
Colts vs the Jaguars week 17.
They bring the Sam and the will lb and get a hit on the qb.
Colts 6 man pressure Week 8 vs the Lions
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| 6 man pressure 2 under 3 deep |
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| mike engages then drops |
Colts vs Panthers
Here you see a 6 man pressure with the Sam and mike coming. CB basically have all of 1 but playing deep 1/3. The pouch defenders are reading the qb's shoulders and looking to break on the first movement and react quickly. The benefit of this is the disguise.
coaching point: The widest rusher has to peel and take the back if he releases. That is an important teaching point. In this case if the rb releases sam would have to peel and take him.
You can run man different combinations and keep the coverage the same! It's 2 under 3 deep coverage.
You can send the following combinations:
mike and sam, weak cb and sam (my favorite) , mike and will. will and free safety.
The coverage is strong or weak and whatever you want to call it. we call it slim for strong safety coming down and fat for free safety coming down.
Film study:
Additional Clemson Tigers Video footage
from Coach Dicko's youtube page.
Here is the Clemson 6 man pressure. It shows double a gap pressure with the following pass responsibilities.
Sam-poach
Free-poach
mike-blitz A
WIll-blitz A
Anchor middle 1/3
cb-press bail
Clemson 2019 National Championship
In the 2019 national championship game the Clemson Tigers ran it out of their Base 4-2-5 and also out of their nickel.
There are 2 clips in the film below. The 1st is a standard double a gap blitz that they ran before. See diagram above. The 2nd blitz they ran vs Ohio State was really a great design.
They end up bringing 2 off the edge out of their 3 safety 3-2 dime look.
You can see the pressure concepts. The blitz above was a key sack in a critical situation of the national championship. Its the 2nd clip below:
The Bucaneers run it as well but vary it with their 2 defensive lineman.
They add a wrinkle and have 2 defensive lineman bail late and look for shallow crossers. You can see their variation of it in the 2 games they used it this year on the clips below.
Here is the Washington's running it on 1st and 9. They run it vs. 20 personnel.
Additional video Clips!
Here’s an issue when you bring it in short yardage situations.The back releasing can be an issue as shown in this 3rd and 4
Here the Colts run a nice pressure vs the Jags. Get a hit on Qb and force the turnover.
Here you see a 6 man pressure with the Sam and mike coming. CB basically have all of 1 but playing deep 1/3. The pouch defenders are reading the qb's shoulders and looking to break on the first movement and react quickly. The benefit of this is the disguise.
coaching point: The widest rusher has to peel and take the back if he releases. That is an important teaching point. In this case if the rb releases sam would have to peel and take him.
You can run man different combinations and keep the coverage the same! It's 2 under 3 deep coverage.
You can send the following combinations:
mike and sam, weak cb and sam (my favorite) , mike and will. will and free safety.
The coverage is strong or weak and whatever you want to call it. we call it slim for strong safety coming down and fat for free safety coming down.
Film study:
College and NFL Teams that run the coverage: (There are more)
Pitt Panthers(they run a ton of it) watch them play Syracuse in 2019 for some good clips
from Coach Dicko's youtube page.
Here is the Clemson 6 man pressure. It shows double a gap pressure with the following pass responsibilities.
Sam-poach or eyes defender
Free-poach or eyes defender
mike-blitz A
WIll-blitz A
Anchor middle 1/3
cb-press bail
2 more additional clips:
In the 2019 national championship game the Clemson Tigers ran it out of their Base 4-2-5 and also out of their nickel.
There are 2 clips in the film below. The 1st is a standard double a gap blitz that they ran before. See diagram above. The 2nd blitz they ran vs Ohio State was really a great design.
They end up bringing 2 off the edge out of their 3 safety 3-2 dime look.
You can see the pressure concepts. The blitz above was a key sack in a critical situation of the national championship. Its the 2nd clip below:
The Bucaneers run it as well.
They add a wrinkle and have 2 defensive lineman bail late and look for shallow crossers. You can see their variation of it in the 2 games they used it this year on the clips below.
The Pitt Panthers run some very good 6 man pressures vs Delaware. They bring the cb and will on the first snap and run their 2 under 3 deep. You can see some of the other clips in the Delaware game. You will see other clips with different blitzes but the first one is shown below.
Please understand every 6 man pressure has 2 underneath defenders and a 3 deep secondary. Clips below.
Another Pitt Panther variation vs Notre Dame in 2018. They go odd and send send 6 on 3rd and 5 vs 2x2.
Notre Dame picks it up and gets the ball out for a 1st down and 6 yard gain.
Here’s an issue when you bring it in short yardage situations.The back releasing can be an issue as shown in this 3rd and 4
Here the colts run a nice pressure vs the Jags.
Get a hit on Qb and force the turnover.
Bonus coverage:
Pitt vs UCF
