MatchQuarters by Cody Alexander

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Campanile’s Double-Mug Menu vs. Jalen Hurts

Cody Alexander — Mon, 19 Oct 2026 10:01:30 GMT

One of the biggest surprises in 2025 was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ defensive dominance under first-year playcaller Anthony Campanile. In 2024, the defense had fully collapsed, finishing 31st in DVOA (FTN), and was not projected to be anywhere near the top ten in Campanile’s rookie campaign.

In his lead-up to calling defense in Jacksonville, Campanile worked under Brian Flores, Vic Fangio, and Jeff Hafley, giving him a rich tapestry of schemes to draw from. For most around the league, how Campanile would style his defense was a complete mystery.

The Jaguars are once again at the top of the defensive charts, ranking third in DVOA and #1 against the run through five weeks. Jacksonville’s defensive scheme is largely built on Campanile’s time with Hafley or a Saleh-based system, featuring a Nickel-based defense (61%) and low levels of Base (22%).

The Fangio elements of the Jaguars scheme show up in the coverage menu, where Jacksonville ranks third in Cover 6 usage through five weeks (19%). Quarters is also run at ~19%, making the Jaguars one of the NFL's top split-field coverage teams (47% when adding Cover 2).

Flores’s influence shows up clearly: the blitz menu. Last season, the Jaguars were one of the NFL’s best blitzing teams. Over five weeks, they rank eighth in EPA/blitz (-.181).

Jacksonville’s Blitz Rate sits at 27%, below the league average, and 24th overall. 20% of Campanile’s blitz calls are simulated (#12), meaning only four defenders will rush the passer regardless of stacking the box or sending a second- or third-level defender.

In the clip above, Campanile pairs split-field coverage behind pressure with the popular “Sand Deuce” concept. But the “all-up,” double-mug alignments Jacksonville features are what truly keep protections guessing.

So far, the Jaguars are eighth in double-mug usage (x23) and, in comparison, were ninth in ‘25. Campanile’s style is to keep the offense guessing as to who might be coming on a blitz while maintaining a stable structure on normal downs.

Against the Eagles, Campanile ran his “all-up” menu six total times. With Jalen Hurts at quarterback, Philadelphia is the league's #1 double-mug offense so far this season (x37) and ranks 28th in EPA/play when facing the look (-.606).

Currently, only the Browns’ Deshaun Watson carries a worse completion rate than Hurts (48%) against these all-up looks. Overall, the Eagles rank 29th in EPA/play against the blitz (-.236). So it's no surprise Campanile’s Blitz Rate against Hurts rose by almost 7%.

One of the main features against the Eagles in London was the signature all-up alignment that is a hallmark of Campanile’s Flores background. Against these looks, Hurts went 2-of-5 for 17 yards and only one 1st Down, which was against an all-up Quarters pressure.

After two early completions, Campanile turned up the heat. Below, we examine the Jaguars’ double-mug menu versus Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles.

This also appears to be a weekly trend:

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Defending Play-Action with Patriots 2-Roll Coverage

Cody Alexander — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:01:50 GMT

As NFL offenses expand 13 personnel packages to isolate defenses with heavy play-action concepts, defensive coordinators must maintain solid run fits without surrendering the deep intermediate. This clinic breaks down how the New England Patriots execute a 2-Roll coverage, disguising a pre-snap Cover 3 shell to build a “zone double” over the lone receiv…

Defending Trips Nub: The Shove Call Mechanics

Cody Alexander — Thu, 15 Oct 2026 10:03:58 GMT

Trips-Nub formations force defensive conflict by condensing the field and isolating deep over routes against single-high coverage. In this breakdown, we examine how the Las Vegas Raiders use a boundary "Shove" call to adapt weak-rotation Cover 3 into an inverted Cover 2 shell. Learn the exact check and Safety communication rules to bracket vertical routes and neutralize max protection beaters in both Cover 3 and Tampa 2.

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Northwestern’s Robber Package

Cody Alexander — Mon, 12 Oct 2026 10:03:30 GMT

Northwestern hasn’t started a season 4-1 since 2020 under Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald. That year, the Wildcats finished 7-2 in a COVID-shortened season, won the Big 10’s Western Division, beat Auburn in the Citrus Bowl, and finished the season ranked #10 in the country (AP/Coaches). Current Head Coach David Braun has the Wildcats off to a fast start, and they won’t see a ranked opponent until Halloween, when they visit Oregon.

Could this be the makings of a special season?

They haven’t won ten games since 2017.

On paper, nothing about the Wildcats’ defense stands out. According to PFF, they ranked 44th in EPA/play in the Power 4 (68 total teams), 33rd against the run, and 53rd against the pass, all while posting a similarly neutral EPA (.000) heading into their latest win against Ball State.

Overall, the unit ranks a respectable 29th in DFEI (think NFL’s DVOA) and 33rd in Points Per Drive (PPD), and it will likely improve after this week’s win. But Northwestern does lead major college football in one category: Robber coverage.

Braun’s unit, led by Tim McGarigle, is scrappy and doesn’t make mistakes; they don’t even blitz (65th in Blitz Rate). These are hallmarks of a Wildcat defense.

The unit is a 4-2-5 defense that majors in Quarters (18th in the P4) and Cover 2 (13th). Against Indiana and Penn State, Robber (Bracket) has become an increasingly important coverage. In both games, the Wildcats ran it seven times (19 overall), and their EPA/play when running it is an astounding -.575, with a 13% success rate.

21% Completion Rate
41 Total Yards and 1 TD (vs. PSU)
4 Total Forced Incompletions (FINC)

Robber has become Northwestern’s change-up to their standard looks on middle-yardage downs. Instead of blitzing to force the issue or spinning into different coverages, McGarigle’s defense doubles down on man coverage and uses its Safeties as vision players in the seams. The system suffocates the middle of the field, builds a maxed-out box, and forces the ball into low-percentage sideline passes.

The term “Robber” has different meanings depending on the context. More recently, the term describes a “vision” Safety in a Cover 1 concept, typically dropping away from the Nickel.

In older concepts, Robber is used in Quarters, with the Safety playing vision and “robbing” the Curl of #1. Northwestern has married both to create a Bracket-like coverage outside the Red Zone.

Against Penn State, the Wildcats used their Robber coverage to defend their Spread formations, mostly on 2nd & Long or 3rd Downs. The coverage is man across the board, with both the Hash Safeties tilted and watching the Quarterback. All defenders align outside the receiver and try to funnel routes toward the Safeties.

Unlike its sister coverage, Bracket, which is a man-match concept, Northwestern’s Robber coverage doesn’t require an exchange of responsibilities. For example, in Bracket, if the Slot breaks inside, the Safety nails down on the route, allowing the Nickel to become a zone defender.

Northwestern wants to compress space near the sticks and force offenses into low-percentage throws. The Robber concept is not typically a 1st Down call, but a mid-range scheme for when the Wildcats want to tighten their grip on the sticks. Against Indiana and Penn State, the coverage forced Northwestern to either play a longer 3rd down or punt.

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Attacking the Tight End: Cleveland’s Early-Down Run Pressures

Cody Alexander — Fri, 09 Oct 2026 10:01:04 GMT

There would always be a transition in Cleveland once Jim Schwartz stepped away from coaching in 2026. With Kevin Stefanski out and heading to Atlanta, the Browns turned to Ravens Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken as his replacement.

Schwartz, who had been with the team the last three years and whose units ranked in the top-ten in DVOA in two of those three, promptly retired on February 6th, when Cleveland didn’t give him the job. Monken and the Browns didn’t want to wholesale change the defensive system.

With established players like Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward, and Grant Delpit set to return, and after trading for the Jaguars’ Tyson Campbell the previous season, the Browns already had a clear schematic identity. Plus, promising rookies in 1st-rounder Mason Graham and 2025 defensive rookie of the year Carson Schwesinger were also in the fray.

There was no clear Schwartz heir apparent, so Monken and the Browns hired Atlanta Falcons’ Passing Game Coordinator Mike Rutenberg as their next defensive coordinator.

Garrett would be traded to the Rams for Jared Verse and mainly a ‘27 1st-round pick. Delpit and Ward would receive extensions in late July. Though not a total reset, losing Garrett changed what the Cleveland defense could be in 2026.

Since 2020, Rutenberg has worked under Robert Saleh or Jeff Ulbrich. That system is structurally similar to what Schwartz was running in Cleveland, with a Wide-9 Base defense. Coverage selection is where it differs.

Under Schwartz, the Browns consistently led the league in Cover 1 usage, bucking the trend toward a zone-centric style. The Saleh/Ulbrich system is built on Cover 1 and Quarters, using Cover 1 as a change-up or 3rd & Medium call.

Rutenberg, in line with what the Browns and Monken wanted, has leaned fully into Cover 1, leading the NFL and running it on almost 50% of their downs. But, the new DC has deviated from Schwartz by blitzing more.

Under Schwartz, the Browns typically were at the bottom of the league in Blitz Rate, finishing 26th in 2025 (24%). In ‘26, that rate has increased to almost a third of Cleveland’s plays, sitting them 12th overall. Interestingly, Stunt Rates have also increased from 15% in ‘25 (24th) to 26% in ‘26 (2nd).

Against the Steelers on Thursday Night Football, Rutenberg illustrated his movement philosophy by attacking Pittsburgh’s TEs on early downs against the run. Currently, the Browns are not in the top ten in DVOA (FTN) and are struggling against the run in the first month of the season (21st in DVOA).

Currently, the Browns are seventh in Run Blitz Rate (32%), but they've been chaotic in how they deploy it. Against the Buccaneers (W2) and the Steelers (W4), the RBR was over 43%, but against the Jaguars (W1) and Panthers (W3), it was under 22%.

That is a big swing. In their first four games, only the Steelers didn’t clear the century mark (92).

The efficiency of the pressures is also disjointed. When the Browns blitz against the run, they have a 50% Stop Rate and have created seven No-Gains + TFLs (x31). When Cleveland plays the run “straight up,” they have a 46% Stop Rate but have only created eight total NG + TFLs. The EPA/run is only 0.05 higher when comparing Blitz vs. No Blitz, which is basically neutral.

The game against the Steelers might serve as a blueprint in the future. Though the EPA/rush when blitzing was neutral, the Average Depth of Tackle (ADOTK) went from 5.6 to 3.7, almost a full two yards.

Rutenberg is finding out what his system and roster can do. So far, attacking opponents’ passing games has been the only thing Cleveland can consistently hang their hat on. Currently, the Browns rank 11th in Pass DVOA and are top-five in Win%, Total Pressures, Pressure%, and PFF’s Pass Rush Production (PRP) score.

The Browns’ main vulnerability remains the early-down run game. Rutenberg’s answer against the Steelers wasn't to sit in Base and try to play gap control (sit-n-get) against Pittsburgh’s massive TE, Darnell Washington (80), but to bring pressure directly at the point of attack to reset the line of scrimmage.

Below, I dive into the three best examples from last Thursday night.

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Bears “All-Up” Pressures vs. Jalen Hurts

Cody Alexander — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 10:02:29 GMT

All-up presentations force offenses into immediate protection stress, but the real advantage comes from manipulating the quarterback's post-snap eyes and hot throws. In this clinic breakdown, we examine how the Chicago Bears used mugged front alignments to stress Philadelphia's pass protection, isolate the running back, and steal throwing lanes with interior vision drops. Through 2x2 and 3x1 adjustments, see how linebacker T.J. Edwards varied his rush-stab timing and cut intermediate hot routes underneath split-field coverage to bait Jalen Hurts into game-changing turnovers.

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How Texas Used “Penny” Spacing vs. Tennessee

Cody Alexander — Mon, 05 Oct 2026 10:27:43 GMT

There is a misunderstanding about the Briles system. Fans and pundits laud the wide splits and “Deep Choice” highlight-reel throws, but the engine of the system has always been the run game.

Josh Heupel wasn’t always a disciple of the Briles system. Initially, he played for Mike Leach in ‘99 and continued under the system in 2000. When he started calling offenses, he had to pivot to a more power-run game with lackluster results. Heupel was not renewed after the 2014 season.

Before taking the offensive coordinator job at Mizzou, Heupel spent one year at Utah State still running his Leach-based system. When he arrived in Columbia, he had fully embraced the Briles system, learning the playbook from his former college roommate, Jeff Lebby, the current Mississippi State Head Coach and Art Briles's son-in-law.

Mizzou’s offense would explode, and Heupel turned that job into the head-coaching role at UCF, then at Tennessee, where he brought the “pure” Briles system to the SEC in ‘21. Though Lebby started coaching at Ole Miss and Kendal Briles was hired at Arkansas in 2020, the system they each ran had been pared down to match LSU Head Coach Lane Kiffin’s current adjustments, since both had formerly worked for him.

Tennessee’s offense has evolved to use the TE in the passing game, incorporate more motion, and run a more diverse run game. Still, the roots are directly from the up-tempo uber-spread alignments that force defenses to defend every blade of grass and manufacture consistent light boxes.

Over the years, the Saban-centric SEC has developed unique ways to defend the Vols, from Georgia’s 3-High Mint package to Austin Armstrong’s Gators defense, which refused to blitz (<18%) and played a modified Cover 2 from the Tite Front. Defenses get “weird” when they have to defend this offense.

Texas had not played Tennessee since the 1969 Cotton Bowl. But Texas’s new defensive coordinator, Will Muschamp, was well-versed in the Vols’ offense, having worked for Georgia for five seasons in different capacities.

Muschamp is a familiar name in Austin, having coached there last in 2010. It’s been 15 years since he stalked the sidelines at DKR, but Head Coach Steve Sarkisian brought him back to raise the level of play on the “Forty Acres.”

Steve Sarkisian brought him back as an autonomous “head coach of the defense” to free up Sark’s offensive focus, adopt the Saban/Smart vocabulary that has given Texas fits (0-3 vs. Georgia), and replace Pete Kwiatkowski’s softer zone footprint with aggressive, SEC-style man-match physicality.

“Instead of robbing Peter to pay Paul, I’m letting him go do his thing on defense...

which allows me to get back to doing the things that I believe I’m really good at.”

To counter the Vols’ offensive system, Muschamp dug deep into his Rolodex and used a scheme similar to the one Georgia used in Smart’s inaugural matchup with Heupel: a “Penny” or 5-1 Front. Heupel uses wide splits and tempo to force light boxes, run the ball downhill to open space downfield, and isolate their speedy receivers. Muschamp’s Penny alignment creates a barrier across the front without prematurely declaring extra box players.

Instead of creating a “new” package or adjusting by playing a different style of defense, Muschamp leveraged two of his best defenders in Edge Colin Simmons (1) and Will LB Rasheem Biles (3).

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How Denver Fixed 1st Half Fits Against 13 Personnel

Cody Alexander — Fri, 02 Oct 2026 10:03:27 GMT

The Los Angeles Rams lead the NFL in 13 personnel usage at 42%, stressing defenses with a mix of vertical inserts and horizontal Wide Zone leads. After struggling in the first half, the Denver Broncos deployed a critical halftime adjustment that generated -0.3 EPA per play against heavy packages (Sumer). Learn how Denver paired an interior twist stunt w…

Boss Front Pressures: Manipulating Half-Slide Protection

Cody Alexander — Thu, 01 Oct 2026 10:02:03 GMT

Learn how the Patriots used a 5-O Boss (Load) Front alignment to manipulate Half-Slide pass protection and create unabated pressure against Aaron Rodgers. This defensive clinic breaks down pre-snap motion indicators, linebacker Hug Rush mechanics, and interior stunts designed to defeat common protections. Discover actionable techniques for building layered pass-rush “cages” that restrict quarterback escape lanes and force rushed throws.

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Thursday Clinics are the “Open Lab.” You have 30 days to study this clinic for free before it hits the Paid Archive. Click below to become a full member of MatchQuarters.

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Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction & Protection Manipulation

00:33 - The Boss Front Alignment

01:24 - Attacking The Slide & Man Protection

03:04 - Return Motion & Pre-Snap Indicators

04:08 - The Hug Rush Communication

05:13 - Post-Snap Paths & Isolating the Guard

07:43 - Spillane's Contain Path

09:36 - The Boss Side NOT Stunt

10:46 - Macro Takeaways & Protection Philosophy

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How Brandon Staley Is Weaponizing Kaden Elliss

Cody Alexander — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 10:01:19 GMT

There are three Elliss brothers currently playing in the NFL, and all three are excellent at generating pressure on the quarterback. Two of the brothers, Kaden (Saints) and Christian (Patriots), are off-ball linebackers; Jonah (Broncos) mainly plays on the edge.

There’s something in the water at the Elliss household.

Last spring, one of the best free-agent pickups on defense was Kaden's move from the Atlanta Falcons to the New Orleans Saints, returning to the team that drafted him in 2019. In just two weeks, defensive coordinator Brandon Staley has weaponized one of the NFL’s best hybrid off-ball LBs.

Kaden is unique in how he aligns and attacks the offense, which is why he is a perfect fit in New Orleans. Last season, the Falcons had Kaden align in the B-gap on 34 of his rushes, the most in the NFL and ten more than Demario Davis, who became an unrestricted free agent after eight seasons as a Saint.

The Falcons had Kaden rush the passer on 174 snaps in 2025, ranking fourth among LBs, behind hybrids Frankie Luvu (Commanders), Derrick Barnes (Lions), and Eric Wilson (Vikings). Only Wilson was used in a similar fashion, and his volume is mostly due to Brian Flores’s blitz-centric style.

Luvu and Barnes are hybrid “Edges” who line up as de facto defensive linemen when they are not off the ball. Kaden stands out because he rushes over the Guard on most of his snaps, with just 28 total rushes from the Edge position in ‘25, easily doubling Wilson, who had only 12 snaps at 9-technique and none over a TE.

Though Kaden doesn’t put up elite sack numbers (finishing with 3.5 last season), he is one of the best pass-rushing LBs in terms of creating pressure and generating quarterback “hits.” Last season he led all LBs in “Beaten Defender” (BD) reps (one-on-one “win”) and was second in QB Hurries.

Staley, with Davis exiting and needing a hybrid off-ball blitzer, stayed in the division and plucked Kaden back from the Falcons. Last season, the Saints had the eighth-highest Blitz Rate along with the fourth-highest simulated pressure rate.

In New Orleans 3-4 defense, the addition of Elliss amplifies the already excellent rushes of Edges, Carl Granderson and Chase Young. The move also simplifies Pete Werner's role, allowing him to move to the off-ball Mike position, where he’s best suited to play.

Though the season is only two weeks old, Staley has already shown the Elliss’s uniqueness in generating pressure. Elliss is currently tied with Minnesota’s Blake Cashman for total pressures (6) and has the third-best Pressure Rate (31.6%). Cashman and Wilson both have over 30 pass rushes, compared with Elliss’s 19.

Currently, he’s also:

4th-best Win% (21%)
4th in PFF’s Pass Rush Production (15.8)

The Saints currently have the 17th-ranked Blitz Rate in 2026 (29.6%), with Elliss as the main weapon. Against Baltimore and Lamar Jackson, Kaden’s utility was on full display.

Brandon Staley comes from the Fangio tree, but unlike others in the system, the 2025 Saints leaned heavily on their Base defense (3-4). Last season, New Orleans was in Base on 36% of its plays, the fourth-highest rate in the NFL, and they are hovering near that mark (37%) through two weeks in 2026.

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Campanile’s G-Read: Breaking Pass Protection With Double-Mugs

Cody Alexander — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:03:55 GMT

Last season, defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile was an unknown commodity. A rookie play caller who was inheriting a defense that was 31st in DVOA in 2024 (FTN). Fast forward to the start of 2026, and the Jaguars’ 44-year-old coordinator is someone on most front office radars.

Campanile has a diverse background, working with Don Brown, Brian Flores, Vic Fangio, and Jeff Hafley. Entering 2025, not many knew what the defense would look like.

Would the Jaguars solve their problems with aggression like Brown and Flores, or would they pivot to more structured looks like Fangio or Hafley?

Jacksonville’s defense finished sixth in DVOA, with one of the league’s best run defenses (fourth), but it lacked punch in its pass rush. Still, the defense caused enough problems to finish 13-4 and earn a divisional championship and a playoff berth.

Campanile’s style of play calling mostly reflected his time with Hafley in Green Bay, with a Wide-9 front and relatively even mix of open- and closed-post coverages. But there were flashes of Flores-themed pressures.

One of the hallmarks of a Flores-based defense is its use of open-post pressures. Under Campanile, one of their unique schemes in 2025 was using traditional Fire Zone paths (two defenders off the edge) with Quarters coverage behind them.

Unlike Flores, who tends to use B-gap “plugs” and edge pressure from his secondary, Campanile decided to use traditional paths complemented with Quarters rotations. These pressures, especially when run against 11 personnel, allow the defense to attack protections while still maintaining the ability to cap vertical routes or layer the intermediate against any play-action passing.

In 2025, Jacksonville ranked 4th in split-field pressure rate at 17%. Through the first two weeks of the new season, Campanile has increased that figure to 28.5% (4th in the NFL). The Jaguars were also 12th overall in Pass Blitz Rate (33%) in '25, and are at the same level through two weeks (37%). Campanile appears to be using similar logic in ‘26.

Against Denver in Week 2, Campanile used a Guard-Read mugged pressure to attack one of the NFL’s best offensive lines. “G-Read” schemes have become a popular complement to traditional double A-gap alignments that target the Center/RB communication link.

The Double-Mug alignments were something the Jags specialized in last season and reflect the Flores philosophy. Last season, Jacksonville ranked tenth in their usage.

Not only did Campanile attack the Broncos with a mugged alignment, but he also used specific structure to create the protection issues he needed to get home. Plus, he added a nice “twist” to make sure the pressure had layers against a mobile quarterback like Bo Nix.

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Cross-Key Quarters: Defending Condensed 12 Personnel Sets

Cody Alexander — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 10:01:50 GMT

Running split-field Quarters against condensed 12 personnel sets can quickly blind your Safeties and compress your defensive umbrella. In this clinic, I break down how Oregon uses a "Will 4" concept to cross-key Safeties post-snap and bracket deep curl dropouts behind a play-action Split Zone. Learn how to marry Edge "Grab-Me" techniques with backend triangle spacing to eliminate popular Cross-Country routes and keep your Base 3-4 sound.

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Thursday Clinics are the “Open Lab.” You have 30 days to study this clinic for free before it hits the Paid Archive. Click below to become a full member of MatchQuarters.

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How Brian Flores Uses Pressure to Kill the Run

Cody Alexander — Mon, 21 Sep 2026 10:02:55 GMT

The Vikings blitzed the Packers on more than 80% of their downs in Week 1. For a defense that is already pressure-heavy, that number is still astronomically high.

The next-closest team, according to PFF, was the Commanders at 49%, whose defensive coordinator is former Vikings assistant Daronte Jones, and who just left the system in Minnesota.

Blitzing is baked into the scheme’s DNA.

Minnesota in 2025

Last season, the Vikings led the league in double-mugged alignments, or defensive formations in which two or more defenders were stacked on the line of scrimmage. Most defenses use these mugged formations on passing downs to manipulate protections, but Brian Flores is indiscriminate in his use of them.

Coach’s Note: Most people think of double A-gap alignment when they think of double mug, but as the graphic above shows, Flores uses these formations more on early downs than he does on 3rd down. In fact, last season, Minnesota ran more double-mugged alignments on early downs (80) than 30 of the 31 other teams on any down. Flores wants to gap out the run game while applying constant edge pressure, which accelerates reads on play-action. He’s forcing the offense into a vise.

Most analysts (and fans) will see the Blitz Rate number and imagine exotic pressures, with defenders moving towards the line of scrimmage while others drop out. That just isn’t the case.

Flores will be the first to tell you that many of these “blitzes” are more structural than scheme. These pressures are not exotic 3rd Down calls, but highly structured “cutoffs” built to kill an opponent’s run game or quickly disrupt any play-action passing concept.

The defense’s main goal is to apply pressure on every down and in every gap to create a “flinch effect.” It’s an extreme fight to constrain space:

Pre-Snap Paralysis (Alignment): “All-Up” mugged fronts force the offensive line into locked man-protection rules and require offenses to keep skill players in the box to chip or pass protect.
Point-of-Attack Penetration (Movement): Instead of playing passive “sit-and-get” two-gap football, Minnesota drives defensive linemen across blockers’ faces and blitzes to disrupt run lanes and create early negative plays.
Structural Disruption (Execution): By shutting down early-down run efficiency, Flores puts offenses behind the sticks, forces third-down passing looks, and eliminates play-action boots.

Image via Code and Football

The defense is a throwback to Buddy Ryan’s Bears’ “46 Defense,” which featured up to six defenders on the line of scrimmage. Ryan’s defense wanted to create one-on-one matches for his elite defensive line. Flores, like Ryan, is trying to do the same, but also to shrink the field.

Minnesota’s defense is a paradox: it pressures more than anyone in the league while also playing the most zone in the NFL. Flores wants eyes on the ball, and the large number of defenders near the line of scrimmage forces a quick time to throw. The ball is essentially funneled into “kill zones” behind the line of scrimmage (run) or into predictable low-zone areas (<10 yards) that are easy to tackle (pass).

Jordan Love got out to a fast start against the Vikings in Week 1, going 8/16 with 189 yards and both his passing TDs in the first half. In the second half, Love was sacked four times, one being a strip-sack, and threw an interception, all while being blitzed.

Love finished the day with a 50% completion rate and the lowest Time To Throw (TTT) in Week 1 at 2.45 seconds. The disjointed nature of Love’s performance is exactly why Flores leans into his pressure-centric style.

An offense may win a few early battles, but over time, Flores wears down his opponent with the constant threat of an overload blitz. It’s football’s version of the full-court press. Eventually, the offense can’t withstand the siege and succumbs.

Most importantly, Minnesota shut down the Packers’ run game. Over the last two seasons, the Vikings have finished in the top ten in Run DVOA (FTN). Against Green Bay, Flores doubled down on a “heavy” identity that runs counter to the modern defensive meta of a Nickel-based system.

PFF charted Minnesota in Base on 51% of snaps in Week 1, the third-highest rate in the league, continuing a trend from 2025, when the Vikings ranked third overall in Base usage at roughly 53%.

Minnesota’s structure creates lapses in the offense’s blocking and protection, and its use of run blitzes and stunts prevents many running backs from getting going. The Vikings deploy Base to build heavy walls along the line of scrimmage, then aggressively attack run paths with interior line stunts and second- or third-level blitzes.

Green Bay finished the day with 61 total rushing yards, including 48 against a blitz (3 YPC). Running the ball efficiently is game control, something Flores tries never to relinquish.

Flores is entering year four of his tenure with the Vikings and is coming off back-to-back years finishing in the top three of FTN’s Defensive DVOA. They have some tremendous players, but the scheme amplifies their abilities by creating consistent, sound pressure.

There is no air for an offense. Minnesota uses quick pressures and movement to stay ahead of the chains on early downs by creating negative plays. Flores weaponizes his pre-snap alignments to make the offense completely predictable.

Against the Packers, Flores's philosophy for stopping the run was on full display. Without balance or early-down efficiency, the Packers’ offense wore down and was forced into the exact predictability Minnesota’s pressure system is designed to exploit.

Flores has entered 2026 with a purpose: kill the run and let the pressure handle the rest.

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Mike Macdonald’s Cover 6 Blueprint Against Drake Maye

Cody Alexander — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 10:01:04 GMT

The obvious response to the “Two-High Revolution” of 2020 was always for offenses to pivot into more condensed formations and heavier personnel packages. A stronger commitment to the run game would naturally follow. Such is the ebb and flow of football.

But as offenses have gotten “heavier” over the past few seasons, NFL defenses are not so keen on relinquishing their two-high structures. According to FTN, the league’s split-field coverage rate was 43% last season. PFF had that number at 36%. Regardless of the analytics service, historical data shows that two-high coverages are up.

The NFL is not yet at a 50/50 split in coverage families, but the league is adding nuance and expanding its menu for open-post concepts. Week 1 in the NFL had a split-field coverage rate of 41%.

One coverage in particular is slowly gaining traction: Cover 6. Week 1’s usage of Cover 6 was at nearly 15%, almost even with Quarters at 17%.

What used to be a simple Quarter-Quarter-Half concept has expanded into a “family” of coverage schemes. The Eagles’ Vic Fangio, along with his protege Brandon Staley (now with the Saints), started the Two-High Revolution by running a majority (80%+) of their snaps from a depth, or a two-high shell.

A misnomer is that these coverages were all Quarters-based, but in reality, the Fangio system used depth as a leverage tool, still relying mostly on Cover 3 schemes from a weak rotation or away from the passing strength. Closed-post weak rotation schemes function in a similar fashion to Quarters and Fangio’s most popular split-field coverage, “Cover 8.”

Cover 6 in the Fangio tree is called “Stuff,” and it is primarily used to get a zone double to the single receiver side. “8” or “Trix” places the Cover 2 side (Half) to the passing strength, allowing for a poach Safety to the backside. At the beginning of the snap, Cover 8 and Cover 9, Fangio’s weak Cover 3 call, can look exactly the same.

The goal of this style of play is to create layers in the target-rich intermediate zones and backstops against pesky deep crossing routes that have become the main engine of the NFL’s modern offenses. For early downs, these coverages can help support the box while muddying the reads for under-center quarterbacks.

Defensively, NFL units have been slow to adopt the Fangio split-field “rotational” system because of its complexity. Last year, only the Fangio-adjacent and Ravens-adjacent systems, mainly the Seahawks, ran them extensively. But the coverage is slowly growing in popularity (above).

According to FTN, Cover 6 accounted for only ~6% of all NFL snaps in 2025; PFF reported ~9%. It was also the only concept with a negative EPA (-0.025). In 2026, usage will only climb as more defenses add the system to their toolkits.

Week 1 Usage (PFF):

Quarters | 17.5%
Cover 6 | 14.4%
Cover 2 | 9%
Total Split-Field | 40.7%

Seattle leaned fully into Cover 6 usage in Week 1 against the Patriots, utilizing the coverage on 41% of their snaps, according to PFF. The Raiders, whose DC worked under Mike Macdonald in ‘22 (Rob Leonard), came in second with 36%. The Rams (Shula) and Jaguars (Campanile), both having worked in Fangio schemes, were the only other two teams to crack the 25% mark.

The high use of Cover 6 against New England is by design, and the Seahawks' high-water mark will likely shrink back to a '25 league-leading average of 23%. Drake Maye struggles against the Cover 6 family of coverages.

Last season, Maye saw the split-field coverage over 100 snaps, which led the league. Within those snaps, the Patriots’ quarterback also led the league in:

Interceptions (4)
Sacks (9)
Scrambles (11)
Turnover Worthy Plays (4)

Along with those negative results, Maye was 30th in QB Rating and 29th in EPA/play against the coverage. So, when the Seahawks opened the NFL season against the Patriots, it was unsurprising that Mike Macdonald & Co. chose to spam the coverage. In all, Maye saw the coverage on 29 total snaps and on 21 total dropbacks. The end results: two interceptions and three scrambles against the coverage.

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Bobby Hauck’s 4-Down 3-High Defense

Cody Alexander — Thu, 17 Sep 2026 10:01:41 GMT

Modern college offenses are forcing defenses out of traditional Odd Stacks with condensed sets, 12 personnel, and Split Zone RPOs. In this clinic, I break down how Bobby Hauck and Illinois adapt by shifting into a Bench/Under Front to create odd spacing via defensive line reductions. You will see how the Illini pair this four-down front with a three-high secondary alignment, replacing the vacated Will linebacker with the Middle Safety to build a dominant three-man kill box for the back.

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Flores Blitz Architecture And NFL Week 1 Run Fits

Cody Alexander — Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:01:16 GMT

Brian Flores dismantled Week 1 pass protections by deploying heavy gap-out pressure fronts that forced quick, low-percentage throws. Across the league, a lack of live preseason contact showed up immediately on tape, leading to missed tackles, blown edge leverage, and fractured run fits. Cody Alexander and Felix Johnson break down the schematic adjustments, coverage rotations, and defensive tape defining early-season NFL execution.

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Timestamps:

00:00 Preseason Contact Deficits And Missed Tackles

02:43 Darnold Injury And Macdonald Structural Game Plans

18:00 Shanahan System Tells And Buffalo Isolation Routes

24:54 Chicago Broken-Play Spacing And Carolina Edge Fits

31:58 Detroit Secondary Structure And Workload Allocation

37:29 Ravens Man-Coverage Punishers And Front Pressures

44:19 Flores Gap-Out Architecture And Structural Pressure

53:28 Preseason Alignment Rust And Defensive Communication

59:43 Chiefs Run Leverage And Denver Play-Calling Flow

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Last week’s episode:

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Divorced Fronts & Trips Checks: Patterson’s USC Defense

Cody Alexander — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 10:00:16 GMT

Newly elected Hall of Fame coach Gary Patterson is back on the sidelines, calling defense after a three-year hiatus. He wasn’t away from the game completely, though, after mutually agreeing to part ways with TCU at the end of October 2021.

First, a stint as the Special Assistant to the Head Coach at Texas for Steve Sarkisian in ‘22 and then a consultant gig for Dave Aranda’s Baylor Bears in ‘23. Why did it take him so long to get back in?

“I had to be out three years to qualify for the college Hall of Fame,” Patterson explained to The Hardline, a radio show on “The Ticket” in DFW. But he did have suitors during his “sabbatical,” one being USC’s Lincoln Riley.

Patterson was 0-6 overall against Riley, but his defense left an impression on the coach. At Big Ten Media Days this summer, the former Oklahoma Sooners head coach explained, “I've never coached against somebody that I thought was more unique and tougher to go against than Gary Patterson.”

One thing that stuck with Riley was Patterson’s ability to defend Oklahoma's high-caliber athletes with a relatively limited roster at TCU. “…[T]he talent level was different. He just consistently year after year adapts and coaches and develops in such a unique way.”

Riley is entering his fifth year in LA and has surpassed double-digit wins only in his first season, a sharp contrast to his first four years leading in Norman, where he won four straight Big 12 titles. Defense has been a consistent issue.

In his first two years, the Trojans’ defense was abysmal, ranking in the bottom third of DFEI, an efficiency metric similar to the NFL’s FTN DVOA. Alex Grinch, who was Riley’s defensive coordinator in Norman, was fired, and D'Anton Lynn was poached from cross-town rival UCLA. The defensive floor rose, but it was still not a top-25 unit.

As the landscape of college football changes, Riley is realizing that to compete nationally, and especially in the Big Ten, he needs a dominant defense. Last year, the Big Ten had four defensive units in the top 10 of the DFEI, including National Champion Indiana. If USC is going to return to dominance, it has to rebuild its defensive standards.

Riley first tried to get Patterson to join the staff in ‘23, but, as the coach said, he didn’t want to reset his Hall of Fame clock and was elected last December. Later that month, Lynn left LA for Penn State, his alma mater, opening the door for Patterson and Riley to reconnect on the golf course and eventually land a DC offer.

The unique defense Gary Patterson implemented resonated with lower-level coaches and enabled his Horned Frog teams to compete with higher-caliber opponents. TCU’s Rose Bowl victory in 2011 over highly touted Wisconsin was arguably its most famous victory.

That game featured a Badger offensive line averaging 320 pounds against TCU’s 270. The 2011 Rose Bowl was proof that the smaller, agile defense Patterson created could hang with traditional offenses, but the entire football world was about to change, and the Horned Frogs’ defense was already ahead of the curve.

Patterson is the quintessential “Quarters” coach, and his 4-2-5 defense is popular in every corner of the United States. Along with Virginia Tech’s Bud Foster, Patterson helped push the popularity of the 4-2-5 as a viable defense against the rising Spread offenses at the turn of the century.

In 2021, Patterson’s last year in Fort Worth, the Horned Frogs ran split-field coverages on 60% of their snaps, easily in the top five. When asked to help Texas the following year (’22), their split-field coverage rates rose from 42% to 58% (PFF).

Quarters is a malleable coverage and can carry extensive teaching and tags; it’s more of a defense than a coverage concept. What appears to be a simple Quarters 4-2-5 defense can carry a deep bag of “tags” and alignments to counter anything an offense throws at it.

One of the unique features of the TCU defense was its ability to separate the front six from the secondary (divorced). The front six worked independently in alignment with the five DBs. Going further, each side of the secondary could “match” the formation to their side (set), making the defense flexible to any alignment.

Patterson builds leverage tools with his defensive line to assist his unit without needing to check into different packages and alignments. The front is also amplified by stunts and formation checks that can be dependent on each week’s game plan, forcing coordinators to recalibrate during the game.

Ironically, as Patterson heads back to the sidelines, we are seeing a rebirth in the popularity of the 4-2-5. Teams in the late 2010s began shifting to Odd Fronts that plugged the B-gaps and allowed the defense to blitz from multiple points while still maintaining seven-man distributions (Creepers/Sims). Issues began to arise as teams realized their pass rush was limited and were constantly being forced to play in five-man fronts as multiple TE formations became more popular.

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Below the fold for paid subscribers: A complete film breakdown of Gary Patterson's Week 0 defensive structure vs. San Jose State, detailing the alignment rules, coverage mechanics, and the technical details behind Special (Stubbie) and Solo (Poach).

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