Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 15 playbooks
Breakdown
Cover 1 LB Blitz brings a linebacker blitz off the second level while the secondary plays man coverage underneath with a single deep safety over the top. The diagram shows five defenders with man coverage triangles crashing downhill after the snap, four cornerbacks and safeties locked in press or man alignment on the perimeter, and one deep defender covering the middle of the field to erase big plays over the top. This is a man pressure package designed to force a quick throw or win with speed rushers before the extra blitzer arrives, with the primary read being to identify the free rusher and either user him or trust your man coverage to hold up for the extra half second.
Defensive Reads
Presnap, check if the offense has a running back in max protect since that tells you whether your extra rusher will be picked up cleanly Identify the single deep safety shell and confirm the offense is not stacking three receivers to one side which can create a natural pick or rub against your man defenders Post snap, watch for a lurking linebacker sitting in a shallow crossing lane, since if the offense hot routes a receiver into that zone it beats straight man This pressure gets shut down by quick game concepts like slants and stick routes that get the ball out before the blitz arrives, so respect fast release throws on third and short It wins big against seven step drops, rollouts away from protection, and any deep dropback pass where the extra rusher forces an early or errant throw
Usage Tips
Call this on early downs or third and medium when you expect the offense to run empty or spread sets that leave the tackle without help
Check the running back alignment presnap since a blitzing back can leave a gaping hole for hot route conversions against this pressure
User the extra rusher off the edge or through the A gap to speed up the quarterback's internal clock instead of leaving it to the AI
Pair this with Nickel Blitz 0 and Nickel Blitz 1 in your call sheet so the offense cannot key on a single pressure look based on your presnap alignment
Avoid calling this against heavy play action shotgun sets since the extra hitch from the fake can neutralize your rush timing and expose the single high safety
