Playbooks
Breakdown
Sam Blitz 3 out of the Even 6-1 4-3 Base package brings a linebacker off the edge while dropping into a Cover 3 shell behind it, shown by the three deep blue vertical zones up top and the underneath purple and olive zone drops. The two outside underneath defenders sink to the flats/curl areas while the middle olive zone holds the seam, and the crossing purple zone defender flows toward the opposite flat to help wall off drag routes. This is a zone blitz designed to disguise pressure while still holding three deep, so the primary read for the defense is to trust the underneath zone drops to squeeze quick game and hitches while the extra rusher forces a fast throw.
Defensive Reads
Watch the quarterback's eyes immediately after the snap since the added rusher is designed to speed up his decision before deep routes develop. If the offense runs quick hitches or slants into the flat zones, trust your underneath defenders sitting in the purple and olive zones to undercut the throw. Man beater route combos like flood or spacing concepts can exploit the space vacated by the blitzing linebacker, so user control a nearby zone defender to help discourage those quick outs. Identify single high safety alignment pre snap, since this blitz is most effective against offenses expecting standard drop back protection rather than max protect or quick game answers. If the offense audibles into a hot route beating the blitzing gap, spy the running lane with your remaining underneath defender to prevent a scramble or check down for big yardage.
Usage Tips
Call this on early downs or 3rd and medium when you expect the offense to take a shot off single high or empty formations. Check the pre-snap protection and route concepts, if you see a lot of quick game or RPO tags, this blitz disguise can bait a quick throw into a sinking zone defender. Use the flat zone defender's crossing drop to jump shallow drag and flat combos that usually beat Cover 3. Pair this call with Cover 3 Buzz and Mike Will Blitz in the same set so quarterbacks cannot key on personnel or pressure tendencies from formation alone. Mix in Cover 1 Hole or Cover 1 Mlb Blitz on the same down and distance to keep the offense guessing between man and zone pressure without changing your defensive look.
