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Quick Reference
Not in any team playbook.
Breakdown
Mike SS 3 is a Cover 3 zone blitz look out of the Big Nickel Over G set that drops four zone defenders deep and underneath while sending a four man rush with a Mike and Sam pressure package off the edge and interior. The diagram shows three deep thirds covered by the outside corners and a deep safety, with the Mike linebacker sinking to a shallow curl or hook zone and the SS working an underneath flat or curl zone opposite him, while the four rushers converge with staggered arrows to collapse the pocket quickly. This is a zone beater blitz designed to disguise pressure while still holding three deep defenders, so the primary read progression starts with identifying which underneath zone opens up between the Mike and SS droppers before the rush gets home.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and corner alignment to confirm the offense is not sliding protection toward your blitzers, since single high looks with tight corners are the ideal shell for this call. Post-snap, key the quarterback's eyes to see if he is going to the shallow zone vacated by the blitzing linebacker, and be ready to sprint your user controlled defender into that window. This call beats quick game man beater concepts and hot route sight adjustments because the disguised pressure forces early throws into tight underneath windows. It gets exposed by RPOs and play-action rollouts that attack the flats immediately after the snap, since the blitzing linebackers leave those zones vacated for a beat. Watch for offensive hot routes converting outside receivers into quick outs or slants, as these routes attack the exact seam vacated by the Mike and SS in their blitz alignment.
Usage Tips
Use this call on early down and medium distance situations where you expect the offense to attack quickly with hitches, slants or shallow crossers, since the extra rush pressure needs a fast home read to pay off. Disguise the blitz by aligning your SS and Mike as if they are dropping into a normal Cover 3 shell pre-snap, then trigger the pressure at the snap to keep quarterbacks from diagnosing the blitz. Pair this call with Cover 3 Sky or Cover 3 Match in your play-calling sequence so opponents cannot key off your linebacker depth or safety rotation from snap to snap. If the offense shows heavy trips or bunch formations, consider switching to SS Blitz 2 or WS Blitz 3 instead since Mike SS 3 leaves the underneath zones thinner against quick combo routes. User the SS defender post-snap to jump the shortest route in his zone since his assignment is the most exploitable against quick game passing concepts.
