Off man coverage

man2man
Junior Member

Posts: 8

Off man coverage Jul 11, 2004 21:12:24 GMT

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Post by man2man on Jul 11, 2004 21:12:24 GMT

I have a couple of questions for you guys about off man coverage with inside leverage. I like the technique that we use, but I'm always open to improving ways of teaching man coverage from an off alignment & I'm curious about what technique others use. Do you guys coach your corners to key QB, OLman, WR or any combination of these (WR to QB) vs. a typical split receiver? What kind of initial alignment do you use & do you backpedal, shuffle, or "turn & run" at the snap? If you key the WR, do your corners provide any adequate run support by only watching the receiver? Also, when keying only the WR, how & when do you teach the corners to break on routes? If you key OLman or QB, do you have trouble with your corners losing inside leverage or losing their vertical cushion too early? I've always coached the kids to key WR at the snap, read WR's body language for run or pass, rep it a ton in practice to get better at run support. We play with 1 yd. inside leverage at a depth of 7 yds. off receiver. We work to keep inside leverage at all times with a backpedal/weave technique. We attack & sprint to the WR's upfield shoulder once he makes a break on his route & we do not look to the QB (or ball) until we get to the receiver. If we get there early, find the ball & either stay on WR's upfield shoulder or under cut the WR (depends on where the ball is thrown). If we get there late, attack upfield shoulder & slap, rip or strip the WR's hands. This is a general description of what we do but I'm very curious about what other techniques you guys use. Thanks in advance for the help!!

galdrapann
Member

Posts: 178

Off man coverage Jul 12, 2004 17:57:07 GMT

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Post by galdrapann on Jul 12, 2004 17:57:07 GMT

We teach corners to key the QB. Their initial motion is to backpedal. However, we teach that the backpedal is slow to begin (i.e., almost a walking type movement) and picks up speed as the play develops. If the QB shows drop back action, the corners initial read is the QB drop mechanics. A QB on a three step drop will be more upright than a QB on a five or seven step drop. We run a 50 front, so the guards are usually uncovered. If the QB shows run action, the corners then move their read to the uncovered lineman, usually the guard. This is to determine if the play is run or pass. If the QB shows run action, but the guard shows pass, that's when we shift the focus to the WR. This allows the corner to provide better run support of man coverage.

With respect to the shoulder off the break, it's a function of the safety structure, QB drop mechanics, and the route, again based on the safety structure. Our corners are taught they have deep outside help with cover 2 safeties, deep inside help with cover 1. So, if a receiver breaks on an inside route with a cover 1 deep structure, the corner will break under the route because the safety is expected to help over the top. Alternately, if the receiver breaks outside in cover 1, the cover will break over the route. The opposite is true in cover 2.

Superchief
Senior Member

Posts: 270

Off man coverage Jul 13, 2004 6:40:12 GMT

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Post by Superchief on Jul 13, 2004 6:40:12 GMT

We teach the corners to align 7yds deep and on the inside 1/2 of the WR. The corners key the UNCOVERED lineman to their side of the ball (not the TE). If that lineman fires across the LOS, the play is a run. If he does ANYTHING ELSE, the play is a pass. Doing this has solved the problems of getting an incorrect read when a lineman pulls on a bootleg or when the OT blocks down on a waggle.
At the snap of the ball, the corner takes 3 small, slow steps or 3 short shuffles as he keys the lineman. If he gets a pass read, is eyes go to the QB. If the play is a 3-step pass, he'll react to the QB's shoulder and run to the ball when it's thrown and tackle the WR(goal is no yards after catch). Once the QB drops beyond 3 steps the corner gets his eyes on the WR and backpedals. When the WR breaks the corner's cushion, the corner will turn and run with the WR, getting on the WR's front hip. Corner will look at WR's far hand. When that hand goes up, corner will punch this hand with his inside hand. We teach the corners that in man once they look at the WR, don't look back to the ball. As a general rule, we tell all DB's that they have no business looking back at the ball until they are close enough to touch the WR.

We spend a great deal of time working all DB's vs fade, post-corner, dig. Regardless of whether or not the corner has help, we have the corners break for the upfield shoulder. We also spend time working against receivers who weave on their release.

We do not teach the C's to look at the WR for a run/pass key; too many times I have seen a WR run-off a DB while the ball is run behind the DB. We are an 8-man front; our corners are really secondary contain players. It's tough for them to play man and contain.

I hope this has helped you out, or at least given you some food for thought. If you have questions on how we go about teaching/drilling this ideas, post an address and I'll get back to you.

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Post by man2man on Jul 11, 2004 21:12:24 GMT

Post by galdrapann on Jul 12, 2004 17:57:07 GMT

Post by Superchief on Jul 13, 2004 6:40:12 GMT

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