The Football Coaching Podcast with Joe Daniel

The Double Edge Blitz, or the laziest call in Joe’s terminology, can help you when you’re in a pickle or when the offense just has your number for a series. But, there are better and worse places to call it. On this episode Joe and Daniel discuss the Double Edge Blitz, what they are fundamentally, the benefits they bring to your system, and coaching points to ensure your players know it and execute it to perfection.

Protect your passing game using slide protection. Get the details of how to coach slide protection in the quick game and drop back pass to give your quarterback time to throw the ball.

Defensive Line Stunts are a great way to be aggressive up front in your defensive calls without weakening your coverage packages. This episode takes a deep dive on Defensive Line Stunts including slants and twists. Every episode in Season 8 is a deep dive into a particular play call (or family of calls, in this case). I’ll share origins of the call, why you run the call and how to coach your players to execute it. Then we look at how coaches on the other side of the ball can attack the call and defeat it.

Deep Dive on the Counter Trey run play made famous in the NFL by the early 1980's Washington run game! This play is a feature of the One Back Offense. Learn the origins of the play, how to execute it, and how to stop the Counter Trey.

Part 1: Origins of the Call Where did the Double A Gap Blitz come from? Blood, Sweat and Chalk credits Jim Johnson as DC under Andy Reid’s Eagles teams in the early 2000s. Credit to Cincinnati Enquirer article, Mike Zimmer as Defensive Coordinator in Cincinnati really popularized it (with Paul Guenther?). Teams have been attacking the A Gaps since the start of football. Johnson developed the double A gap scheme to force the Offensive Line to adjust protections by putting immediate pressure up the middle. Zimmer article mentions using the blitzes to disguise coverage. I guess?    Part 2: Execution of the Call   How do you run a Double A Gap Blitz? Blitzing two linebackers (or a linebacker and a safety) in the A Gaps. The Defensive Tackles have to get out of the A gaps, so you’re probably lining up in a 40 front with either 2’s, 3’s or 2i’s that will stunt out.  Walking the linebackers up on the line forces the Offensive Line to either check protection to a slide or gap protection, or let the back handle one of the linebackers on an immediate rush with no help.   An adjustment I like is to stack the two rushers. This is because our guys are not NFL, and so the back guy has a better chance of dropping off for either zone or man blitzes. You can also drop both and play traditional cover 3 if they know how to zone drop. With both guys up, drop the man the center steps to, and blitz the other one. You end up with a 3 under/3 deep Crossfires are great for pass blitzing in High School.    Part 3: Attacking the Call What do you run to attack Double A Gap Blitzes? Teams are primarily running double A gap blitzes to attack a pocket passer. It’s a great blitz in the NFL, but you probably aren’t seeing drop back passers 8 games a season. You can also attack interior run plays like a midline or trap play. Run the ball off tackle. Just run an outside zone play, those backers are locked into the A gap and can’t scrape to build a wall against the edge runs. A toss play or jet sweep takes them completely out of the equation. Linebackers aren’t adept at keying down blocks the way a defensive lineman is. Try to trap one of them. If you can pop to the second level there’s no one there. One on one with the safety.  Slide protection is your best bet, but get the ball out quickly. If you’ve got a 3-step quick pass called, use a slide protection to get the ball out.  Screens!  Get the QB in shotgun (no matter what), and then get him on the move. Sprint out or roll out. Don’t bother with play action, the backers are already sucked up. Hit a quick drag route or TE pop pass, or any sort of moving route. 

Season 8 of The Football Coaching Podcast is focusing on deep dives on individual play calls, so what better play to start with than the Zone Read? In fact, we've come full circle - Zone Read Option was the topic on the very first episode of the podcast back in 2012! The deep dive series will take a look at play calls from every angle. We look at the origins of the play, the details of execution, how to attack or defend the play, and how to evaluate and evolve the play within your playbook.

The season kicks off and that call you’ve been working on for 6 months just is not working. Run plays, passing concepts, blitzes, stunts or coverages. Whatever it is… it’s not working. This is the 5 step process to evaluate that football play call before you just kick it to the curb. You’re always smarter in February than you are in September and October (or whenever your season happens this year!), so let’s figure out what the problem is!

There’s an old saying among option football coaches. OK, really it’s among all football coaches… mostly old football coaches. If you can’t block ’em, read ’em. Pretty simple. When you don’t have anybody that can take that guy 1 on 1, you always have another option. Just make him wrong, no matter what he does. That’s the premise behind option football. Make one guy wrong, no matter what he does. For coaches running a true option football system, this is a way of life. Let nothing get in the way of reading the guy that’s causing problems. Then there’s the rest of us. We run an offense that is not based solely on reading defenders. Are we left out of the option offense goodness? Nope. In this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’ll show you how to expand your offensive playbook using option football principles. Without confusing your players and causing a total disaster in the backfield.

Any time you decide to install a new playbook for your football team, you could run into trouble. It takes time to teach the skills your players need. It takes time for the coaches to understand how to teach those skills, too. The knee jerk reaction when your team isn’t firing on all cylinders in the first few weeks of the season is to panic. Go back to what you were doing before. But that’s not the answer. This week’s Football Coaching Podcast looks at how to make in-season adjustments when your brand new plan of attack isn’t working like you expected. This is how to get your team back on track with the changes you need to make to reach a whole new level of success.

Football drills are a big favorite among coaches. It's our thing. Standing there holding a whistle, watching your guys run around hoops and over bags. That's what coaching football is all about. Except that most defensive drills are a waste of time for high school football players. They end up never translating the drills to the field. Today you'll find out the football drills that really matter at every defensive position to get your players ready to win on game day.

Using a creative evolution in the coverage package leading to a modified 2-Read Coverage in his 4-2-5 Defense, Hollis-Brookline High School Defensive Coordinator Fred Hubert helped lead his team to a New Hampshire State Championship in 2019. Find out the keys to the team's success and how this take the 2-Read Quarters Coverage package can work for your defense.

What’s the best plan for attacking Man Coverage? Here’s how to beat Cover 1, Cover 0 and 2-Man Coverage with your passing game. Nothing fancy. I’m not going all ‘Air Raid’ on you just yet. This week’s Football Coaching Podcast is about attacking man coverage with sound principles that can work in any offense. There’s nothing more frustrating than getting a loaded box, blitzing linebackers, and not having a way to make the defense pay for it. But all that pressure can really cause chaos for your offense. To get the balance back and return to your running game, you have to be able to throw simple concepts against man coverage. And you must be able to protect the Quarterback. The concepts discussed in this episode are all part of the Pistol Power Offense System. You can get access to the System by becoming a JDFB Insider client right now!  

Coach, your kids are bored… and it’s 100% YOUR FAULT. Okay, extreme ownership says everything is your fault, so you already knew that. But, really, you’ve planned a boring and stagnant practice, so that’s exactly how it feels. On this episode Joe Daniel and Daniel Chamberlain are talking about shorter more high energy practices that achieve a goal, motivate athletes, and put the spark back in  your team.

“The one kid that keeps DCs up at night,” aka the dual-threat QB who is nearly impossible to contain. I bet you’ve coached against (or been lucky enough to coach with) at least one of these in your career. All of football seems to be going in the direction of putting the most athletic kid at QB and let him get loose! On this episode Joe and Daniel discuss the fundamentals of stopping a dual-threat QB, how to coach pass rush lane integrity, keeping dual-threat guys contained, and how to manipulate the QB with your scheme, so you can control his actions.

Getting Pressure on High School Quarterbacks is quite the challenge. Between terrible fundamentals by HS O-Linemen, to quick game, to QBs generally being run first athletes, you have to really drive home the point of getting D-Linemen to the QB. On this episode Joe and Daniel discuss how to teach your pass rushers to think situationally, how to call your defense to attack the opposition, and the simplicity of using 1-2 pass rush moves for your HS players.

At some point we all struggle with it… consistently moving the ball down the field. You lose a player, the defense has you out-manned, there can always be something to slow you down. But, you can do more before the season starts to prevent it from happening. On this episode Joe and Daniel discuss how to get the ball rolling again in your favor. From attacking weakness, to ensuring your game day isn’t derailed by a flawed offensive playbook, we’re covering it all!

In this episode of 'The Football Coaching Podcast,' hosts Daniel Chamberlain and Joe Daniel discuss the current excitement of scrimmage week and share insights into recent college football strategies. They delve into the topic of establishing a team's identity by focusing on core principles, non-negotiables, and creating player buy-in. Key themes include the importance of consistent communication, understanding player challenges, and employing a well-defined practice structure. Additionally, they emphasize the value of adopting a 'coach simple, play fast, win' approach and explore the application of military leadership models to coaching. Personal updates include Daniel's office reorganization and exploration of new ventures, highlighting their commitment to personal and professional growth.  

Depth wins championships. It doesn’t matter how talented your starters are — if you’ve got no one ready to step in when it counts, you’re in trouble. Backups matter. Depth matters. And if you’re not preparing those guys now, you’ll pay for it later. On this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, Daniel Chamberlain and Joe Daniel talk about how to build depth on your roster, get your backups game-ready, and keep your team competitive no matter the numbers. You’ll hear why the Coach Simple philosophy is the fastest way to boost confidence and performance, how to train your scout team to become tomorrow’s starters, and how to adapt your drills when roster sizes are smaller than you’d like.

There isn’t a perfect defensive scheme in football. Let’s say that again, there isn’t a perfect defensive scheme in football. They all work. Pro’s and Con’s… sure they exist. But, the truth is, every modern defense should be able to work successfully against any offensive scheme, you just have to remain adaptable. On this episode Joe Daniel and Daniel Chamberlain talk about adapting  your defense to whatever you’ll see this season, how you can shut down the spread specifically, and coaching your defense to SWARM the football!  

The offensive line is the HEART of your football team. It doesn’t matter what the skill level of everyone else on the field is, you win or lose behind the O-Line. If yours is getting steam rolled each and every game, you’re likely losing each and every game.  On this episode, Joe and Daniel are talking how to get your O-Line to improve by simplifying your communication, simplifying your scheme, and getting your players to love their craft!