How Do I Football?

[bruin228]

I thought this would be a good thread idea. This is a place not necessarily for NCAA strategy, but for football strategy in general. I feel that I'm less educated in the ways of football basics than most other members on here. Thus, this thread. Post good books or articles to read, videos to watch, new things that pop up during the season (only 6 more months...), etc.

My first question would be: what's a good, consistent way to read coverages?

 

[fonzilla]

Anything on smartfootball.com is helpful for anyone who is a newbie or wants to educate themselves on American Rugby(football)

 

[JSU Zack]

My first question would be: what's a good, consistent way to read coverages?

Read the defense "top to bottom" before the snap. If it's a single safety up top or "1 high", it's probably Cover 1 or Cover 3. If there are two safeties deep or "2 high", it's Cover 2 or Cover 4.

From there, read the corners. Are they in press coverage? If so, they're playing man. Otherwise, they're in zone. If the corners are in zone with 1 high, it's Cover 3. If they're in zone with a 2 high look, it's Cover 4.

Then, read the front seven. How many down linemen are there? Are any linebackers or safeties stunting? What techniques are the defensive linemen playing?

You have to ask yourself all of this within five seconds, or you're going to get a delay of game penalty. It takes some practice to learn how to read the defense, but it will eventually become second nature. Keep in mind good defenses and users will try to disguise their coverages some times to throw a curveball. That's where post-snap reads come in, but that's for another post.

Once you recognize what the defense is doing, it's up to you to make the right play call to counter what they are doing. One of the popular ways to do this is the constraint theory. I'll leave it up to you to research what does well against specific defenses.

 

[Brick]

Wait, hold up. In order to have any credibility on the subject, we require at least a girlfriend, if not a wife, pic.

 

[bruin228]

Read the defense "top to bottom" before the snap. If it's a single safety up top or "1 high", it's probably Cover 1 or Cover 3. If there are two safeties deep or "2 high", it's Cover 2 or Cover 4.

From there, read the corners. Are they in press coverage? If so, they're playing man. Otherwise, they're in zone. If the corners are in zone with 1 high, it's Cover 3. If they're in zone with a 2 high look, it's Cover 4.

Then, read the front seven. How many down linemen are there? Are any linebackers or safeties stunting? What techniques are the defensive linemen playing?

You have to ask yourself all of this within five seconds, or you're going to get a delay of game penalty. It takes some practice to learn how to read the defense, but it will eventually become second nature. Keep in mind good defenses and users will try to disguise their coverages some times to throw a curveball. That's where post-snap reads come in, but that's for another post.

Once you recognize what the defense is doing, it's up to you to make the right play call to counter what they are doing. One of the popular ways to do this is the constraint theory. I'll leave it up to you to research what does well against specific defenses.

Yeah, I know somewhat about this. I guess a better question would be how do you consistently discern the coverage when the D is in something like a 3-3-5? There's almost always almost one safety. For instance, I played Navy last night and he had 1 high safety pretty much the whole game. Yet he was playing some Cover 2 variant most of the time. Do you just have to say fuck it and hope you called something that can beat him?

 

[JSU Zack]

Yeah, I know somewhat about this. I guess a better question would be how do you consistently discern the coverage when the D is in something like a 3-3-5? There's almost always almost one safety. For instance, I played Navy last night and he had 1 high safety pretty much the whole game. Yet he was playing some Cover 2 variant most of the time. Do you just have to say fuck it and hope you called something that can beat him?

The 3-3-5 is a problematic defense to face due to the problems you just mentioned. The best thing I can tell you to do is lab against the 3-3-5. Personally, I like to run between the tackles vs. the 3-3-5 because there's only three down linemen. Force your opponent to commit against the run, and then go to the play action.

Specifically, what offense do you run? If you see Cover 2 most of the game, you should be able to run with ease and pass over the middle.

 

[bruin228]

The 3-3-5 is a problematic defense to face due to the problems you just mentioned. The best thing I can tell you to do is lab against the 3-3-5. Personally, I like to run between the tackles vs. the 3-3-5 because there's only three down linemen. Force your opponent to commit against the run, and then go to the play action.

Specifically, what offense do you run? If you see Cover 2 most of the game, you should be able to run with ease and pass over the middle.

Leach-style Raid though I had to go with Troy's PB against Navy last night because mine got screwed up. He put 6 in the box probably 80% of the time so I couldn't check to runs often. I know it wasn't basic Cover 2 because the flats were open a lot. I think it was Cover 2 Sink, maybe Cover 6. I couldn't do anything. Everything over the middle was covered and corner routes were covered too. In real life I could just throw it out to the back on those flat routes but in the game the QB never throws them right and the RB either runs out of bounds 4 yards behind the line or has to stop and catch it and only gets like a yard.

I know I had a good amount of success with 6s because he would bring his one safety up real close to the line to cover the middle stuff so I'd go over the top.

 

[JSU Zack]

Try a 2x2 perimeter game with quick outs, curls, etc. to make simple high/low reads against the soft coverage. The slots should have the advantage against linebackers.

 

[bruin228]

Would stuff like Smash work?

 

[fonzilla]

Try a 2x2 perimeter game with quick outs, curls, etc. to make simple high/low reads against the soft coverage. The slots should have the advantage against linebackers.

What about shotgun spread flex smash w/hb running a angle route?

 

[TXHusker05]

Smash works against anything, it's a pretty universal play. I would HIGHLY recommend it against 335/425 defenses. Very few strong safeties are good enough man to man defenders to hang with a quality slot receiver and Smash is a good way to test that.

I plan on doing a full section in the "Putting It All Together" part of the Spread-I on Smash because it is one of my go to plays. There are a few tweaks I make to Smash that makes it very effective. I'll go over it in detail in my thread but hot routing the outside hitches to a "Smoke Screen" route is huge. The biggest issue with default Smash in game is the spacing, flat defenders can safely cover both the Hitch and Corner route. If you change that hitch to a smoke screen, you get the same effect but the read cleans up nicely.

If people adjust to that or give you weird inverted coverages (or their SS's cover your slots), you can make the sight adjustment to have the outside WR's run a slant or underneath route. I run a variation of Smash all the time in my offense. One of my favorite PA passes is out of Stack Opposite (Normal Flex Wing) with the outside WR running a delay slant, slot WR running a corner, H-Back running a seam. It's an auto-completion to someone.

 

[bruin228]

Smash works against anything, it's a pretty universal play. I would HIGHLY recommend it against 335/425 defenses. Very few strong safeties are good enough man to man defenders to hang with a quality slot receiver and Smash is a good way to test that.

I plan on doing a full section in the "Putting It All Together" part of the Spread-I on Smash because it is one of my go to plays. There are a few tweaks I make to Smash that makes it very effective. I'll go over it in detail in my thread but hot routing the outside hitches to a "Smoke Screen" route is huge. The biggest issue with default Smash in game is the spacing, flat defenders can safely cover both the Hitch and Corner route. If you change that hitch to a smoke screen, you get the same effect but the read cleans up nicely.

If people adjust to that or give you weird inverted coverages (or their SS's cover your slots), you can make the sight adjustment to have the outside WR's run a slant or underneath route. I run a variation of Smash all the time in my offense. One of my favorite PA passes is out of Stack Opposite (Normal Flex Wing) with the outside WR running a delay slant, slot WR running a corner, H-Back running a seam. It's an auto-completion to someone.

Yeah, this is annoying as hell. I think I threw a pick against Navy because of this. He was clearly in the flat so I threw the corner and he picked it off.

 

[TXHusker05]

Make that adjustment. Hot Route + RT for each outside WR. It helps the spacing a lot, one of the two will come open unless it is just blanket man coverage. You can run a split field concept with Smash if you're getting route mirroring or really tight man coverage. Slant/Corner to one side and Hitch/Corner to the other. That basically gives you Y Corner one way and Smash the other using only Smash.

 

[bjc]

Yeah, I know somewhat about this. I guess a better question would be how do you consistently discern the coverage when the D is in something like a 3-3-5? There's almost always almost one safety. For instance, I played Navy last night and he had 1 high safety pretty much the whole game. Yet he was playing some Cover 2 variant most of the time. Do you just have to say fuck it and hope you called something that can beat him?

It would be easier to figure this out in RL. Gjge EA.

 

[bruin228]

That's what I figured. Oh EA

 

[fonzilla]

Yeah, this is annoying as hell. I think I threw a pick against Navy because of this. He was clearly in the flat so I threw the corner and he picked it off.

Sometimes motioning another receiver or te to create trips helps to clear underneath or over the top coverage

 

[bruin228]

Sometimes motioning another receiver or te to create trips helps to clear underneath or over the top coverage

Didn't think about motioning him but this is definitely true. I have more success with Smash out of Trips than 2x2 formations.

 

[bjc]

That's what I figured. Oh EA

Yeah on oldtopia I went over coverages, alignment, and disguise and how it ties into alignment but that's gone now.

There are only so many ways a defense can line up in a certain coverage without crossing into the unsound territory.

 

[bruin228]

Yeah on oldtopia I went over coverages, alignment, and disguise and how it ties into alignment but that's gone now.

There are only so many ways a defense can line up in a certain coverage without crossing into the unsound territory.

Do you remember what it was titled? I could use the Wayback Machine to look at it.

 

[bjc]

It wasn't it's own thread, just some posts in one of the threads.

I could PM you a bunch of stuff about it, but it's really not applicable to EA footbawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

 

[bruin228]

It wasn't it's own thread, just some posts in one of the threads.

I could PM you a bunch of stuff about it, but it's really not applicable to EA footbawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

Ah okay. Then it'd probably be pretty hard to find unless they archived that specific page.

That'd be awesome. This thread is more for me (and others) trying to understand real football stuff, not just EA stuff. NCAA just happens to be the vehicle because I'm not playing/coaching football right now. That'd be great if you could do so.

 

[bjc]

Now that I know how to print screen and MSpaint (lol), I'll probably have some examples but it's a pretty simple concept.

 

[JSU Zack]

Smash is a part of the perimeter game I was referring to, @bruin228. I don't use it too much, but the whole idea is to put the corners in conflict between covering the deep route or helping cover the backer's man.

 

[TXHusker05]

Sometimes motioning another receiver or te to create trips helps to clear underneath or over the top coverage

That is another thing I've found success with, clear outs. PA Read out of 3x1 trips is great for that. You get a Pivot/Clear out vertical/Comeback which pretty much guarantees someone is coming open. In zone, either someone carries that clear out guy up the field and opens up the pivot or he sits and the vert/comeback concept comes open.

 

[bjc]

Smash literally works against ANYTHING in this game. Anything with a Corner route is good too.

 

[C3PO]

Fooseball!

 

[TXHusker05]

Smash literally works against ANYTHING in this game. Anything with a Corner route is good too.

Yuuuup.

You could run Smash and Y Corner pretty much every play of the game and 9 times out of 10, someone is coming wide open. Only real issue is when someone has lock down corners across the board and/or route mirroring decides it wants to be a bitch.

 

[bruin228]

Pretty good read: http://www.sbnation.com/college-foo...football-offenses-defenses-recruiting-players

 

[bruin228]

Who wants to talk about gap responsibility and scrape defenders?

 

[bjc]

What you wanna know boi?

 

[purple112]

Interesting read about how Pete Carroll mixes up gap responsibilities

 

[bruin228]

What you wanna know boi?

Just gap responsibilities in general, I don't know a whole lot.

I know what scrape defenders are in general and that the offense uses midline to combat them but not much beyond that.

 

[purple112]

Pulling guards/lead blockers also help vs. scrape defenders

 

[bjc]

Just gap responsibilities in general, I don't know a whole lot.

I know what scrape defenders are in general and that the offense uses midline to combat them but not much beyond that.

Scrape defenders can essentially be thought of as an exchange of gaps.

Gap responsibility is easy once you've been exposed to it.

Black bolded letters are gaps, the numbers are ways the defensive players line up. (Note: like many things in football, coaches have varying terminologies for these things. I have never heard of the 8 pictured here but instead a "wide 9.")

Ignoring the numbers, it's pretty easy to see why each of these gaps should be "covered." Not doing so basically allows the offense to abuse it with the running game.

Difference between one-gap and two-gap defenses:

One way of lining up vs one TE set,4-3 defense

Here's an under set against two-back with a TE.

 

[bruin228]

So in a scrape exchange, does the defender have a responsibility for a inside gap(say B) and the outside?

 

[fonzilla]

Just gap responsibilities in general, I don't know a whole lot.

I know what scrape defenders are in general and that the offense uses midline to combat them but not much beyond that.

I hate @Navyhogs team..... I tried running midline and got shut down hardcore... The team is roided out.

 

[TXHusker05]

Midline is next to useless in the game, gun or under center. That was one of the plays I was really excited about coming into '14 but it's really awkward. Even if you read it right (no guarantee), the rest of the blocking breaks down pretty quick.

In my new under center offense I'll be running at Nebraska in that OD, I have a few Midline Flexbone plays that are decent. I really like Midline QB Iso because it isn't as much a "read" play as just a designed QB run. Even if you read wrong, you're usually okay.

I'm glad I didn't have to play Navy's team this past season, not like it will get better next season.

 

[fonzilla]

Midline is next to useless in the game, gun or under center. That was one of the plays I was really excited about coming into '14 but it's really awkward. Even if you read it right (no guarantee), the rest of the blocking breaks down pretty quick.

In my new under center offense I'll be running at Nebraska in that OD, I have a few Midline Flexbone plays that are decent. I really like Midline QB Iso because it isn't as much a "read" play as just a designed QB run. Even if you read wrong, you're usually okay.

I'm glad I didn't have to play Navy's team this past season, not like it will get better next season.

I think the exchange is just to slow. Thats my main problem with the play. I would run the play against numbers and navys fs controlled player would close before I got ro pick a lane...

 

[TXHusker05]

I think the exchange is just to slow. Thats my main problem with the play. I would run the play against numbers and navys fs controlled player would close before I got ro pick a lane...

Are you talking Gun Midline or under center Midline? Gun Midline is brutally slow, similar to Gun Inverted Veer. The animations are just too slow to be of use against aggressive user defenders. Navy is about as aggressive as it gets in manual run support.

I'm guessing I'll regret my under center offense in that OD because of how aggressive people are in run D. But worth a shot anyway.

 

[fonzilla]

Yeah I ran it from shotgun spread flex wk. I will probably just end up removing it, since it didnt really work. QB wrap wasnt even working in that game.. My Wisc team was outgunned in terms of personnel. Your Neb team could go toe to toe with them though

 

[TXHusker05]

Yeah don't bother with Gun Midline. Navy is not someone you can run a lot of option against. Like me, he usually runs Conservative Option D so you have to keep with your QB and they he flies up field to make the stop on your QB. In Bottom Feeder I usually have his number because I have a 98 SPD QB that is impossible to tackle in space, unless you have an exceptional athlete at QB, Navy is tough to beat with option. I did have some success with Speed Option against him, but again, 98 SPD QB cures a lot of ills.

I'd also warn against 2x2 Gun formations against Navy. He defends balanced formations very well, I really like going 3x1 against him. It usually slows his manual run support down a bit because he has to account for that inside slot.

 

[fonzilla]

Yeah I moved the ball a little with Trips and split back formations

 

[TXHusker05]

I get him with Trips quite a bit. I'm a big fan of 3x1 formations in general, they are very difficult to defend. Especially when the majority of users seem to be in 425/335 defenses. Trips causes havoc to those.

 

[Craig7835]

The 3-3-5 is a problematic defense to face due to the problems you just mentioned. The best thing I can tell you to do is lab against the 3-3-5. Personally, I like to run between the tackles vs. the 3-3-5 because there's only three down linemen. Force your opponent to commit against the run, and then go to the play action.

Specifically, what offense do you run? If you see Cover 2 most of the game, you should be able to run with ease and pass over the middle.

I have a tough time with 3-3-5 myself because you don't know what the defense is running. I was playing against Navy & the CPU had the SS lined next to the SLB & the corners were pretty much tight on the WR's. I assumed they were in man coverage,but when I called PA pass,out of the blue I got sacked. I was like WTH? Really?!

 

[NavyHog]

I have a tough time with 3-3-5 myself because you don't know what the defense is running. I was playing against Navy & the CPU had the SS lined next to the SLB & the corners were pretty much tight on the WR's. I assumed they were in man coverage,but when I called PA pass,out of the blue I got sacked. I was like WTH? Really?!

That would be Navy the school, not this guy. What system you on? If it's XBOX are you interested in playing in a OD?

 

[Craig7835]

That would be Navy the school, not this guy. What system you on? If it's XBOX are you interested in playing in a OD?

Nah I have a PS3

 

[fanoftgame]

335 is usually a one high defense. Run some type of option because they dont have enough in the box. Also its usualky a balanced defense. So you should go unbalanced like trips and see how they adjust.

Id also suggest putting the strength of your formation to the short side of the field. Then put your stud wr to wide side. Your stud has lots of room to work essentially one on one. If one the safties is getting into the passing lanes then he should be out of the box snd one less player to defend your run game

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