Defensive Coverage's

Coverage's are basically assignments for linebackers and defensive backs so they know who or where to cover. Coverage's are called before the play, but they are only carried out if the play ends up being a pass. The term zone coverage literally means cover a zone. In zone, unlike man to man, a player is assigned a certain spot on the field to defend on a pass. There are a few zones and sometimes the jobs for defenders vary depending on how the offense lines up or how the defense is coached.

Most common coverages

Cover zero or man coverage: All DB's and LB's have are assigned to guard someone and if they have no one to guard then they react to the play accordingly.

Cover one: Cover one is where some players have a man to guard and others have a zone. In most cases, the two corners have a man to guard along with the strong safety. The LB's and FS's most likely drop into a zone.



Cover two: Cover two means that there are two defenders, most likely the S's, who drop back and split the deepest part of the field making sure no receiver gets behind them. The two CB's each have a zone known as the flats, and the flats are the gaps between the linemen and the sideline. The linebackers normally fill the spots in between.

Cover three: In cover three, three defenders drop back and cover the deepest thirds of the field not letting receivers get behind them. The three defenders are normally the two CB's and a S. The other S can come up if they are in the game, while the linebackers fill in elsewhere including the vacant flats.

Cover four: Cover four is where four defenders drop back to the deepest part of the field to defend which normally are the four DB's. The linebackers fill in the flats and the spots in between.

          

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