This is the third of a series of articles about reasons why teams should participate in 7-on-7 football during the summer. This article discusses the benefits for defensive players participating in 7-on-7 competitions.
Although it is evident that 7-on-7 is a necessity for passing teams, some people wonder why a dominant rushing team like Little Rock Central or West Memphis would participate in what some may view as simply a passing competition. There are many reasons, but one of the main reasons is to develop their defensive players against the pass. The biggest advantages for defensive players participating in 7-on-7 is learning and practicing their coverages, defending live plays, and gaining an understanding of what offenses are trying to do against them.
There are only so many coverages that can be run in football, so defensive 7-on-7 is limited in many aspects since defenders are not blitzing and covering for blitzes. However, 7-on-7 does give defensive backs and linebackers the opportunity to practice each of their coverages. It also gives them repetitions for situational coverage. For example, a coach may call cover three or four on 3rd and 15. The linebackers will learn that it’s okay to give up an 8-yard route in that situation They’ll also learn that playing a coverage on 2nd and 10 will be defended differently than a 3rd and 2, regardless of the coverage.
One of the quandaries that coaches are faced with is how to practice against “game speed.” Even when players are going full speed in practice with first team offense against a first team defense, the intensity of “game speed” is not present. However, competition helps bring out the intensity and adrenaline of a game. 7-on-7 competitions allow defensive players to see a full speed play develop with receivers attacking their zone and having to break on the football. Obviously, this does not replicate a real football game, but it is great practice for pass defense for a secondary and linebackers. In fact, just about every team has a “skeleton” drill, which is basically the same as 7-on-7, that they incorporate in their practices each week in preparation for Friday nights.
Possibly the biggest benefit that defenders, particularly deep defenders, receive from 7-on-7 is an understanding of how a passing offense is trying to attack them. If a safety is in cover three and knows that a team will try to run two verticals on each side of him, he can be aware and get depth without committing to either side. He is in a bind as it is, but if he can delay the read for the quarterback, he will give his rushers more time to get pressure. A deep-third cornerback on a multiple receiver side will come to understand that if the outside receiver runs a 10-yard out in front of him, then he must be aware of the #2 or #3 receiver running a deep route behind him. All of this knowledge and practice doesn’t mean these defenders will be able to stop these combination routes, but it does give them some forward thought to anticipate what the offense is trying to do, and they can do things to make it more difficult on an offense or even make more plays based on what they’ve experienced.
Defending the pass is one of the most difficult things to do in football. That is why we are seeing more spread offenses forming and becoming successful, and that is why 7-on-7 for rushing teams is becoming more common.
As we continue in our series, we will discuss reasons it is good for the development of a coach to be involved in 7-on-7 football.
Showing posts with label Why 7-on-7. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Why 7-on-7. Show all posts
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Why 7 on 7?...Receivers
This is the second of a series of articles about reasons why teams should participate in 7-on-7 football during the summer. This article discusses the benefits for receivers participating in 7-on-7 competitions.
From the time kids begin playing football, they practice being receivers. From running routes for their dad, brother, or other buddies, they are learning to catch the football. All successful receivers must practice catching the ball as often as possible which can be done just about anywhere. However, 7-on-7 competitions give receivers access to practice many other aspects of their job. Learning the offense, adjusting routes, and catching the ball against a defender are just some of those.
Although some basic offenses are simply a route numbering system for receivers, many of the spread offenses are so complex that the athletes must diligently study their playbooks in order to know how to run the plays. Still this doesn’t enlighten them to all they need to know about a play. The receivers have to understand how to run a route based on the combination route that a fellow receiver is running as well as the coverage of the secondary or linebackers. Talking about and writing all this information up on a white board is helpful, but true understanding comes when a receiver is able to experience these things live.
One of the most important things receivers learn from 7-on-7 is how they have to run routes based on a defense. Many kids will learn their routes, but are ineffective in games because they do simply that – run the route. Here is an example.
This is a five-receiver set in which we are running 3 verticals against a cover 2. The read will be for one of the inside receivers on the strong side. The weak #2 receiver is running a flag to pull the weak-side safety. The #3 receiver has to get inside the strong-side safety, then get vertical so he doesn’t get to the other safety and has to get over the dropping linebacker. The strong #2 receiver has to get deep and stay outside the safety, but cannot get too far outside to draw the flat corner deep. The other key is for these receivers not to get caught up with any linebackers that can knock them off of their route. Good route running will give the quarterback an easy read of the strong safety and an easy completion down the field.
Here is the same play against a cover 3. Everyone has the same assigned route, but our #3 and #2 receivers on the strong side have to run their route a little differently. First, they will both may have a defender lined up on them that they will have to maneuver against. For instance, #2 needs to know that in cover 3, that SS will have flats, so he will need to get inside of him but then will need to get vertical keeping two things in mind: first, stay away from the free safety and second, get far enough inside the cornerback who is playing the deep outside third. The #3 receiver must get off of the linebacker and go hard in front of the free safety. Again, as long as the receivers are not held up by the underneath coverage and they run good routes, this is an easy completion for the quarterback.
Another plus of 7-on-7 for receivers is catching a ball in the presence of defenders. Most receiving drills are simply for catching the ball, maybe sometimes a distraction is thrown in, but rarely are there drills ran with a receiver having to catch a ball over a defender or with defenders going after the ball as well. Being able to make a grab in traffic is one key for finding out who can be relied on in a game situation. A player may have the best hands on the team, but if he chokes in a game situation, it would be nice to find that out in the summer as opposed to when football begins.
Although there are several other benefits of 7-on-7 for receivers, we believe the greatest are the three discussed above. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
From the time kids begin playing football, they practice being receivers. From running routes for their dad, brother, or other buddies, they are learning to catch the football. All successful receivers must practice catching the ball as often as possible which can be done just about anywhere. However, 7-on-7 competitions give receivers access to practice many other aspects of their job. Learning the offense, adjusting routes, and catching the ball against a defender are just some of those.
Although some basic offenses are simply a route numbering system for receivers, many of the spread offenses are so complex that the athletes must diligently study their playbooks in order to know how to run the plays. Still this doesn’t enlighten them to all they need to know about a play. The receivers have to understand how to run a route based on the combination route that a fellow receiver is running as well as the coverage of the secondary or linebackers. Talking about and writing all this information up on a white board is helpful, but true understanding comes when a receiver is able to experience these things live.
One of the most important things receivers learn from 7-on-7 is how they have to run routes based on a defense. Many kids will learn their routes, but are ineffective in games because they do simply that – run the route. Here is an example.
This is a five-receiver set in which we are running 3 verticals against a cover 2. The read will be for one of the inside receivers on the strong side. The weak #2 receiver is running a flag to pull the weak-side safety. The #3 receiver has to get inside the strong-side safety, then get vertical so he doesn’t get to the other safety and has to get over the dropping linebacker. The strong #2 receiver has to get deep and stay outside the safety, but cannot get too far outside to draw the flat corner deep. The other key is for these receivers not to get caught up with any linebackers that can knock them off of their route. Good route running will give the quarterback an easy read of the strong safety and an easy completion down the field.
Here is the same play against a cover 3. Everyone has the same assigned route, but our #3 and #2 receivers on the strong side have to run their route a little differently. First, they will both may have a defender lined up on them that they will have to maneuver against. For instance, #2 needs to know that in cover 3, that SS will have flats, so he will need to get inside of him but then will need to get vertical keeping two things in mind: first, stay away from the free safety and second, get far enough inside the cornerback who is playing the deep outside third. The #3 receiver must get off of the linebacker and go hard in front of the free safety. Again, as long as the receivers are not held up by the underneath coverage and they run good routes, this is an easy completion for the quarterback.
Another plus of 7-on-7 for receivers is catching a ball in the presence of defenders. Most receiving drills are simply for catching the ball, maybe sometimes a distraction is thrown in, but rarely are there drills ran with a receiver having to catch a ball over a defender or with defenders going after the ball as well. Being able to make a grab in traffic is one key for finding out who can be relied on in a game situation. A player may have the best hands on the team, but if he chokes in a game situation, it would be nice to find that out in the summer as opposed to when football begins.
Although there are several other benefits of 7-on-7 for receivers, we believe the greatest are the three discussed above. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Why 7-on-7? -- Quarterbacks
This is the first of a series of articles about reasons why teams should participate in 7-on-7 football during the summer. This article discusses the benefits for a quarterback participating in 7-on-7 competitions.
From Burt Reynolds to Adam Sandler, Kurt Russell to Keanu Reeves, the quarterback is the glamour position in almost every football movie (Rudy and Waterboy are the obvious exceptions). Although real high school quarterbacks are not looked at in that high esteem, they do carry a lot of weight on their shoulders. When you start talking about any team, often one of the first questions people ask is “Who is their quarterback?”. Although usually unjust, the success of a team is often placed squarely on the shoulders of their signal caller.
The purpose of this article is to chat about the importance of 7-on-7 in the development of a quarterback. A quarterback can use these opportunities during the summer to help his timing with his receivers, learn to read defenses, and gain invaluable experience leading his team.
The timing between a quarterback and his receivers is obviously a key in being successful in the passing game. Although receivers can go run routes and catch just about anytime, 7-on-7 competitions allow them to do this against a defense. A 10-yard out may be an easy pass to complete against air, but can they do it with a defender right on the receiver’s heels?
Simply talking about secondary coverages and seeing them drawn out on paper doesn’t really give a true feel of what they’ll see on the field. However seeing different coverages live, as well as different ways those coverages can be played by different teams they’ll face is a huge plus in the development of a quarterback. I realize Madden is a great tool as well, but nothing beats having to recognize live what the secondary and linebackers are trying to do to you.
Lastly, I want to show you why I think the competitive experience of 7-on-7 can be extremely beneficial for a quarterback. With these events being so reliant on the performance of a quarterback, he really is forced to step up and be a leader. I think 7-on-7 is advantageous because he could get any or all of these situations in a single weekend:
From Burt Reynolds to Adam Sandler, Kurt Russell to Keanu Reeves, the quarterback is the glamour position in almost every football movie (Rudy and Waterboy are the obvious exceptions). Although real high school quarterbacks are not looked at in that high esteem, they do carry a lot of weight on their shoulders. When you start talking about any team, often one of the first questions people ask is “Who is their quarterback?”. Although usually unjust, the success of a team is often placed squarely on the shoulders of their signal caller.
The purpose of this article is to chat about the importance of 7-on-7 in the development of a quarterback. A quarterback can use these opportunities during the summer to help his timing with his receivers, learn to read defenses, and gain invaluable experience leading his team.
The timing between a quarterback and his receivers is obviously a key in being successful in the passing game. Although receivers can go run routes and catch just about anytime, 7-on-7 competitions allow them to do this against a defense. A 10-yard out may be an easy pass to complete against air, but can they do it with a defender right on the receiver’s heels?
Simply talking about secondary coverages and seeing them drawn out on paper doesn’t really give a true feel of what they’ll see on the field. However seeing different coverages live, as well as different ways those coverages can be played by different teams they’ll face is a huge plus in the development of a quarterback. I realize Madden is a great tool as well, but nothing beats having to recognize live what the secondary and linebackers are trying to do to you.
Lastly, I want to show you why I think the competitive experience of 7-on-7 can be extremely beneficial for a quarterback. With these events being so reliant on the performance of a quarterback, he really is forced to step up and be a leader. I think 7-on-7 is advantageous because he could get any or all of these situations in a single weekend:
- His team gets a big early lead, and he needs to go for the jugular.
- His team gets behind big early, and he needs to get them back into the game.
- He is in a nail-biter in which he has to score every time just to keep up with the other team.
- He has a small lead late and needs to learn to be smart to protect it.
- He is behind late and has the ball one last time while running short on time.
There are many other things that I believe helps a quarterback in his development by competing in 7-on-7. We will uncover many of those in our discussions throughout this series as we delve into the benefits other positions gain by playing 7-on-7 football.
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