Here is a breakdown of the four basic types of pass protection.
Quick(3 step drop for QB):
With Quick you protect inside gaps first and try to keep the DL on the LOS. The basic rules for quick are:
1. If you have a man on or inside block him
2. If you are double teaming with someone keep your eye open for a blitzing backer
3. If you don't have anyone on or inside (tackles only) block the end outside, but keep an eye open for a LB blitz through your inside gap.
4. RB's or TE's are responsible for the outside gap
5. The pass needs to be off fast because the protection isn't supposed to hold up for a long time (2-3 seconds max)
6. Whoever is blocking the DE's can cut block them to get their hands down. Quick passes are too short to put air under the ball so it is easy to knock down.
Dropback(5-7 step drop for the QB):
Don't ask John Cooper but dropback passing is designed to get 4 O-linemen on the 4 DL and usually have a double team for one of the LB's. There are many different ways to dropback protect and all depend on how many people you have blocking, and where you expect pressure.
1. OT's are always on the DE's except for rare circumstances where multiple LB’s walk up to blitz in the A gap’s.
2. The G with a 3 (outside shoulder) will be manned up.
3. Chances are there is a 1 (inside shoulder of the guard) or shade nose so the center and other guard will double-team him to the backer that the protection assigns to them.
Base protection consists of the 5 OL and two RB's. That means that you can pick up a max of 7 guys. The OL has the MLB and the RB's have the OLB’s to anyone else outside like a CB or S. Theatrically the defense could bring the OLB and one of the DB's to one side so that someone would be free. This will create an opening in the defense that the QB and hot receiver need to see and hit the hot route in. My coach used to like to say “If you rock the front you have to roll the coverage.” That means that if you blitz from one side you will have to roll your coverage to that side to cover the blitz. In most cases a DC isn’t going to show the blitz until the snap so that will leave the hot read open until the coverage is able to roll over. The problem with hot reads is that they are usually only good for 5-10 yards so if you are in 3rd and long the hot route probably won’t get you the first down.
In many cases coaches like to have only 1 RB in to protect so the OL will be responsible for 2 of the LB's on 1 side and the RB will be responsible for other LB to anyone outside. Many teams also like to run 5 wide so the line is responsible for blocking everyone. When faced with a 5 wide formation many DC’s like to blitz because they know it will be hard for the Line to pick everyone up. It is up to the Center to send the double team to the biggest threat since you can only block 5 defenders. A blitz out of a 5 wide formation means that there has to be a hot route open. If there are no backs to block the Line must block the 5 greatest threats first. If 2 LB’s walk up inside one of the tackles is going to have to block inside rather than block the end since the QB is more susceptible to pressure up the middle.
The goal of drop back protection is to create a pocket around the QB who should be around 8 yards from the LOS. The guards and center need to do a good job of keeping their men near the LOS. The OT's are trained to stone the DE if he tries to go inside, but run him around the QB if he tries to speed rush outside. The general rule for OT's is that if you are 5 yards off the line the DE should be even with you. You put your hand in his arm pit and run him right by the QB. If done perfectly the DE will run right around the QB but not get close enough to touch him.
Slide (rollout):
With slide protection you usually have a TE and or RB sealing off the front side to make sure that the QB has a clear lane to roll out. To practice sliding my coach would make us hold hands and shuffle in the direction of the slide. We would shuffle 3 times, which would move the LOS about 4 yards to one side. The rules of slide protection are:
1. You MUST capture the edge!!!
2. YOU MUST CAPTURE THE EDGE!!!!! If the outside man on the defense gets the edge on the Line he will clog up the slide and you’ll have a train wreck. There are usually 1 or 2 RB’s that help make sure the edge is sealed.
3. You slide 3 times any more any less will open a gap in the line
4. You are responsible for the gap in between you and the man to your (direction of slide)
5. If you finish the slide and don't see anyone that is a threat to your gap you turn to the outside and look for seepage from the backside.
6. The backside tackle and guard slide backward as well as sideways so the G is 1.5 yards deep and the T is 3 yards deep.
7. Once someone declares in your gap he is yours, you don't stop blocking him if he tries to go through a different gap.
Play-Action:
The key to good play action is to make the D think you are running the ball to pull the LB's and Safeties up toward the line. The QB's fake is almost as important as the line, but LB's usually key on the guards so if you look like your pass protecting it isn't going to work. The rules of play-action passing are:
1. Your first 3 steps should be exactly the same as if you were running the ball.
2. Keep your pads down all the time. Low pads = run for LB's. If they can see the numbers on your chest they know you are pass blocking.
3. After you take your first 3 steps and lock up with your man sink your butt down and block your ass off. PA can take a while to develop so the protection has to hold for 3-5 seconds. This is even more important for trick plays like Flea flicker.
4. You aren't allowed to go downfield on passing plays but the refs will usually give you a 2-3 yard buffer zone, just sink back a couple steps before the ball is thrown.
Quick(3 step drop for QB):
With Quick you protect inside gaps first and try to keep the DL on the LOS. The basic rules for quick are:
1. If you have a man on or inside block him
2. If you are double teaming with someone keep your eye open for a blitzing backer
3. If you don't have anyone on or inside (tackles only) block the end outside, but keep an eye open for a LB blitz through your inside gap.
4. RB's or TE's are responsible for the outside gap
5. The pass needs to be off fast because the protection isn't supposed to hold up for a long time (2-3 seconds max)
6. Whoever is blocking the DE's can cut block them to get their hands down. Quick passes are too short to put air under the ball so it is easy to knock down.
Dropback(5-7 step drop for the QB):
Don't ask John Cooper but dropback passing is designed to get 4 O-linemen on the 4 DL and usually have a double team for one of the LB's. There are many different ways to dropback protect and all depend on how many people you have blocking, and where you expect pressure.
1. OT's are always on the DE's except for rare circumstances where multiple LB’s walk up to blitz in the A gap’s.
2. The G with a 3 (outside shoulder) will be manned up.
3. Chances are there is a 1 (inside shoulder of the guard) or shade nose so the center and other guard will double-team him to the backer that the protection assigns to them.
Base protection consists of the 5 OL and two RB's. That means that you can pick up a max of 7 guys. The OL has the MLB and the RB's have the OLB’s to anyone else outside like a CB or S. Theatrically the defense could bring the OLB and one of the DB's to one side so that someone would be free. This will create an opening in the defense that the QB and hot receiver need to see and hit the hot route in. My coach used to like to say “If you rock the front you have to roll the coverage.” That means that if you blitz from one side you will have to roll your coverage to that side to cover the blitz. In most cases a DC isn’t going to show the blitz until the snap so that will leave the hot read open until the coverage is able to roll over. The problem with hot reads is that they are usually only good for 5-10 yards so if you are in 3rd and long the hot route probably won’t get you the first down.
In many cases coaches like to have only 1 RB in to protect so the OL will be responsible for 2 of the LB's on 1 side and the RB will be responsible for other LB to anyone outside. Many teams also like to run 5 wide so the line is responsible for blocking everyone. When faced with a 5 wide formation many DC’s like to blitz because they know it will be hard for the Line to pick everyone up. It is up to the Center to send the double team to the biggest threat since you can only block 5 defenders. A blitz out of a 5 wide formation means that there has to be a hot route open. If there are no backs to block the Line must block the 5 greatest threats first. If 2 LB’s walk up inside one of the tackles is going to have to block inside rather than block the end since the QB is more susceptible to pressure up the middle.
The goal of drop back protection is to create a pocket around the QB who should be around 8 yards from the LOS. The guards and center need to do a good job of keeping their men near the LOS. The OT's are trained to stone the DE if he tries to go inside, but run him around the QB if he tries to speed rush outside. The general rule for OT's is that if you are 5 yards off the line the DE should be even with you. You put your hand in his arm pit and run him right by the QB. If done perfectly the DE will run right around the QB but not get close enough to touch him.
Slide (rollout):
With slide protection you usually have a TE and or RB sealing off the front side to make sure that the QB has a clear lane to roll out. To practice sliding my coach would make us hold hands and shuffle in the direction of the slide. We would shuffle 3 times, which would move the LOS about 4 yards to one side. The rules of slide protection are:
1. You MUST capture the edge!!!
2. YOU MUST CAPTURE THE EDGE!!!!! If the outside man on the defense gets the edge on the Line he will clog up the slide and you’ll have a train wreck. There are usually 1 or 2 RB’s that help make sure the edge is sealed.
3. You slide 3 times any more any less will open a gap in the line
4. You are responsible for the gap in between you and the man to your (direction of slide)
5. If you finish the slide and don't see anyone that is a threat to your gap you turn to the outside and look for seepage from the backside.
6. The backside tackle and guard slide backward as well as sideways so the G is 1.5 yards deep and the T is 3 yards deep.
7. Once someone declares in your gap he is yours, you don't stop blocking him if he tries to go through a different gap.
Play-Action:
The key to good play action is to make the D think you are running the ball to pull the LB's and Safeties up toward the line. The QB's fake is almost as important as the line, but LB's usually key on the guards so if you look like your pass protecting it isn't going to work. The rules of play-action passing are:
1. Your first 3 steps should be exactly the same as if you were running the ball.
2. Keep your pads down all the time. Low pads = run for LB's. If they can see the numbers on your chest they know you are pass blocking.
3. After you take your first 3 steps and lock up with your man sink your butt down and block your ass off. PA can take a while to develop so the protection has to hold for 3-5 seconds. This is even more important for trick plays like Flea flicker.
4. You aren't allowed to go downfield on passing plays but the refs will usually give you a 2-3 yard buffer zone, just sink back a couple steps before the ball is thrown.
