Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Cover 9 Show 2 is a zone coverage shell out of the Dime 2-3-6 Big Dime 4-1-6 personnel that disguises a two-high safety look before rotating into a deeper zone shell at the snap. The diagram shows three deep defenders bracketing the top of the screen with the two outside deep defenders sitting at the numbers and the middle defender sinking to the deep middle, while underneath the four short defenders spread across the box with the linebacker area defender flowing hard to the flat or seam area on the boundary side. This is a zone beater killer more than an offensive route concept since it is a pure defensive call, and the coverage progression for the defense is to bait the quarterback into thinking it is two-high, then rotate to a single-high or three-deep look post-snap to take away the deep half throws.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap look for the two deep safeties sitting at depth to sell a two-high picture, then track their post-snap rotation to confirm the disguise is on This call is strong against quarterbacks who audible or hot route based on a pre-snap safety count since the rotation invalidates their read after the ball is snapped Watch the underneath defenders flow to their zone landmarks quickly, since a slow rotation leaves a soft spot in the intermediate middle that route combos with a crosser can exploit This shell struggles against quick game and RPO concepts that get the ball out before the rotation completes, so it is less effective against tempo based offenses Man beater route concepts with immediate breaks at the snap can beat this before the shell fully rotates, so combine this call with a press look pre-snap to slow down the timing of those routes
Usage Tips
Show this look on early downs to bait quarterbacks who key pre-snap safety depth into thinking they have a two-high shell to attack with deep outside throws
Use the disguised rotation to jump hitches, comebacks and deep outs that quarterbacks throw with anticipation against what they think is Cover 2
Pair this call with Cover 2 Invert or Cover 2 Sink earlier in a series so the offense cannot distinguish the disguise from a true two-high shell until after the snap
Call this on third and medium to third and long when quarterbacks are more likely to trust the pre-snap picture and throw with timing into the numbers
Sub in a fast slot corner or nickel defender if you plan to user the flat defender since he has to sprint from a shaded alignment to reach his zone landmark in time
