Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
3 Double Buzz is a Cover 3 zone coverage call out of the Dime 4-1-6 personnel group. Both outside cornerbacks sink into deep third zones while the two underneath purple defenders buzz out to the flats, and the two off ball defenders at the second level (the buzz safeties) drive down into the middle hook and seam windows to rob crossers. The single deep safety holds the middle third over the top, giving this defense three deep, four under zone drop shell. This is a zone beater killer, not a blitz, and it is designed to squeeze the middle of the field while still funneling flat and curl routes into the underneath defenders.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check the single high safety alignment and the depth of the two second level defenders, since a shaded buzz alignment tips off the coverage to a savvy user reading hashes. This shell shuts down shallow drag, spot, and curl flat combos because the buzz droppers and flat defenders converge on those same short and intermediate windows. Watch for the offense to attack the deep middle third behind the single high safety, since Cover 3 concepts always carry natural stress on go routes and deep posts split wide. Post-snap, key the running back and tight end releases first, since the buzz safeties are responsible for taking away crossers and seams that come from those release points. If the offense motions a receiver into a bunch or stack, be ready for pick or rub concepts designed to occupy the flat defenders and buzz droppers simultaneously, opening a soft spot behind them.
Usage Tips
Call this on early downs or second and medium when you expect the offense to attack the seams or hit shallow crossers, since the buzz droppers are designed to sit on those throws.
Pre-snap, identify if the offense is running four verticals or double seam concepts, since the buzz safeties dropping into the middle hook areas take away that seam window that Cover 3 normally gives up.
Use this call after showing base Cover 3 Buzz Match or Cover 3 Cloud earlier in the series so the quarterback cannot distinguish the buzz drop from your other Cover 3 shells pre-snap.
Hot route the flat defenders to widen slightly if you are worried about quick out routes or speed outs from stack and bunch releases, since the flats are already occupied but can be beaten with timing throws.
Pair this with Tampa 2 or Cover 4 Quarters in your play-calling sequence to disguise whether you are dropping two safeties deep or buzzing them down, keeping the quarterback guessing on where the void is.
