Football Defense Strengths

The foundation of every defense is the defensive front. The front refers to where each position is when lined up. The seven most common fronts are the 4-3, the 3-4, the 4-4, the 5-2, the 5-3, the 6-2, the Goal Line Defense. All of these fronts have different strengths and weakness’. The 4-3 is most used at the upper levels. It is good against the pass game, but is weak against the run because it has less linebackers to help stop the run game. Its lack of ability to stop the run is not a huge loss though. Most offenses in the National Football League (NFL) pass more than they run. The 3-4 is designed to stop short passing, and ball control offenses. A ball control offense is an offense that wants to possess the ball as long as possible to chew

It had 5 down linemen (one 0-tech, two 3-techs, and two-7 techs), and two linebackers that were lined up in the B gaps. The “middle guard” or 0-tech, now called the nose guard, often dropped into coverage showing a 4-3 look. Today, the standard front is a 4-3. “The idea, therefore, of a middle guard falling back into coverage wouldn’t have caused anyone in 1947 to blink an eye.” As football has evolved, so has the different strategy’s. In the 1950’s, the standard defense was a 5-2. It was designed to stop the smash mouth, run first, pass never offenses. Now, almost 70 years later, football has evolved from run first offenses to pass first offenses. The plays – offensive and defensive used to be basic and dull. They were designed to get the job done. Today, there is a lot more swagger, and flashiness in the plays. It’s all about throwing your opponent off by your looks, and

It is very rewarding when it works, but is very risky at the same time. There is an endless amount of blitzes, and every blitz depends on what coverage the defense is in, & what scheme they are in. This means that there are a lot of options when it comes to blitzing. No matter the type, all blitzes have on goal – disrupt the quarterback. Blitzing is very effective when it comes to disrupting the pass, and can pay off during the run game as well, but it I a gamble. If the offense is running a half back slip screen, and the defense sends all of their linebackers on a blitz, then things aren’t going to turn out well for the defense. The offense is going to gain 20-30 yards, and may even break it away for the touchdown. “When teams did blitz — and a blitz back then was always defined as sending five or more rushers — they played man coverage, working without a deep safety in the middle of the field most of the time. The rewards could be great, but so were the