Coach D cannot be this stupid, can he? This is insulting as a fan.
1. Leave the center uncovered so he can take out our best defensive player on every down.
2. Play 2 deep and have the safeties back pedal on the snap.
3. Ask your defensive ends to collapse the pocket instead of contain the option.
4. Play 2 deep but ask your corners to stay engaged on the WR instead of letting them go to help the run and rely on the safeties to pick up the WR.
5. Nothing new here, but against a running team ask have your LB's line up 7 yards behind the line.
Paul Johnson must still be laughing at Coach D. Might have been the easiest game he has ever called as a coach.
How I would imagine them responding (I'm not expert on this "defense" but this is my best shot)
1. The defensive tackles will engage the guard straight up and stack up the A gaps, leaving our linebacker "clean." The center will not be able to reach the linebacker because he will have to help with the DT. The clean linebacker is then free to either clean up the play or flow to the QB and pitch man. By two-gapping the A and B gaps with one person, they cannot run the dive if the DT plays the technique, clogs the hole, sheds the block and makes the tackle. Basically, a wall is created to shut down the dive.
2. In the triple option, the vertical passing game is prevalent. In order to cause a mistake and get off the field, we must not give up the big play. Also, depth from our safeties will keep them clean, allow them to read keys, identify and pursue to the alley and shut down the pitch man if the ball is pitched. They will also be able to be a last line of defense against dives and options we miss on.
3. We must make the quarterback pitch the ball early. Putting hard pressure on the QB will make him give the ball up, which will be strung out or picked up by our clean backers, pursuing safeties and corners that have beat their perimeter blocks.
4. Again, we cannot give up the deep pass and get out of the down and distance model. The corners must read their keys, beat their blocks and force the pitch man to the ground or back inside. We also have safety and backers making the plays laterally.
5. We lined our backers up deep to keep them out of the wash created by the 2-gapping d-line. They need to stay clean to fill the dive and perimeter option. This also allows them to read the flow of the O-line to fill mis-direction and get to the edge for pitch plays. The is key to stopping the pitch man and subsequently the third option.
This scheme is blatantly retarded and counter intuitive to everything it takes to stop this offense. I'm not on Lu's level from a X's and O's platform, but SO MUCH has to go right for this defense to work. It pretty much makes us win every one on one battle, maintain perfect gap integrity and make every tackle in space. It is saying they are going to make a mistake the more plays they are forced to run. Instead of creating a negative play, it's about creating stalemates and ties at the line. But guess what, it's really ****ING HARD to shed blocks on the line of scrimmage while engaging with a lineman straight up. It's hard to shed a perimeter block with a ball carrier running full speed at you and it's really hard to have lineman and backs constantly rubbing and hitting you as a linebacker as you try to keep your gap integrity. **** ****es me off all over again. Like I said, I'm no expert, but that's how I see them trying to work this. I'm sure I'll get dissected by a much better brain, but that's my take. I hate this ****ty mentality.
