How to Play Zone Defense & When to Use Cover 2, Cover 3, or Cover 4 | NFL Film Sessions 

Watching this after this man won back to back Superbowls as Defensive Coordinator.

This video could be 10 hours longer. Id watch the whole thing.

What's the conversion from Yahds to Yards?

This helps in madden

Back after Spags defense just led us to back to back championships. My guys spags really the 🐐🐐🐐🐐

Me trying to form a defensive scheme in Madden

This is the kind of stuff espn should be showing, instead of 2 grown men yelling at each other over non sense.

These are great analysis, now I can study these to get ready for my games.

I could listen to Coach Spags talk Defense all day and I'd love to sit there and watch tape with him just to see what he sees and why/how he's been so successful over the years

Thank you nfl. I have been on offense for 8 years and this year I’m switching it up. This was very informative to me!

I have so much respect for Steve Spagnuolo. The work he did with the Giants as their defensive coordinator was off the chain! In my humble opinion, Steve is the best defensive coordinator in the game right now.

Interesting stuff. I love Spags. He was DC when my Giants beat the undefeated Pats. He was successful because he had an incredible D line. Strahan, Umenyiora, Tuck, Kiwanuka. You can scheme all day. You still need the talent.

It's like watching war games. This is my favorite part of American football.

American Football . . . more than just the ball. It's battlefield strategizing.

That guy won us a super bowl this year 👍🏽

I love these kinds of videos!! Keep them coming

As a defensive backs coach, this video was very beneficial for me. Thanks for sharing this.

Thank you 🙏. for this content

Use big nickel on madden, sky 3 zone or 3 zone match. Replace your lbs with dBs. Replace one of your ends with your fastest lb Place that lb in a zone or qb sky. You’re welcome

In Spags We Trust

More videos like this please!! Love understanding and being able to disect strategies!!

Still can't believe my Giants fired this guy. Dude was phenomenal in our Superbowl victories and last year's defense was hardly his fault.

His finger gets me every time! 1:57

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE what Spags said at the very end......"the coverage never works, if you don't do that" (referring to "redirect" or "reroutes". This is 1000% true. I'd argue that in every zone scheme, you need reroutes to keep receivers from just running free and to disrupt timing! Cover 2 is one of the strongest coverages you can run when you have the proper rules in place. Rerouting is one of those. Another, is having your corners stay square to the LOS and if there is an outside release by their receivers; 1) they try and drive the receiver OOBs to make them ineligible and 2) as soon as the receiver gets an outside release the corner stays on the inside hip (it becomes man to man cov. at that point). This keeps teams from simply releasing 3-4 receivers deep to overwhelm your two safeties! Now there's more to the technique but that is a basic start to running C2 and being strong against run, short passing game and deep passing game!

And normal people think football is this simple game of run, catch and tackle, nope....its literally like a violent chess match and thats why i love this game

Let me point out that this guy is a disciple of Eagles legend Jim Johnson.

I love a thorough breakdown and intake into defenses. Thank you!

Thanks for the Superbowl ring Coach!!

as a person who's never played organized football, i learned more about Defense in this 6 minutes than i have in 20+ years of being a fan

Best summary of Cover 2/3/4 I’ve seen.

Same. I love the tactics and intricacies of the defense and coach Spagnulo breaks it down so its easy to understand.

I have watched this unintentionally at least three times. I've watched it on purpose about five. Wonderful.

This is amazing content this will help me a lot in my game

Thank you for this type of video

I love this, keep it up NFL.

I learned more about football from this video than my whole life of watching football

GOD, i love football 🥹

Great summary. Now I understand it.

I really enjoyed this video. I simplified the game so that I can really enjoy it!

Great stuff here. So many factors influence which of these to use, and part of being a great coach is knowing which to go to, and when. What down is it? What's the field position? What's the game time? (1st quarter? 4th?) What are the strengths of your Defensive team personnel-wise? What are the strengths of your opponent team personnel-wise? God, I love football.

Preciate the video, has no idea how to run zone in Madden, definitely helpful.

And this is why Steve is the best ❤! Watched him make some of the best defense in the NFL. 2023 Defense has pretty much carried the Chiefs... defense win's championship's.

This is really helpful and will help me understand how to play zone and coverage

I wish Monte Kiffin would do a video on Tampa 2...

One of the best defensive minds in the game

Who in here is a chiefs fan spying on our new guy

Spags came into my work and was sitting at the bar just glued to college football lol.

Great insight from coach.

Like a battlefield. Love football.

Technique is the key 🙏🏼 Football is just football but there’s special players out there man that can just do it so much better.

Jeez this guy can coach

This is awesome. Want more of this.

Thanks for this!!!

And the key to it all was never mentioned, pressure with 4. Big tall men in the QBs vision dramatically shrinking his sight lines and throwing windows

Preach Spags... PREACH!!!

as a giants fan I have nothing but respect for this man.

More of this type of video please!

I love these soo much 👍👍

Depends on the focus of your cover. I coach and teach a flat footed route adjusted cover 4. Safeties in cover 4 become alley contain/Fill replace players players in run. 3-4 base alignment. In pass situations its easy as you play quarters and protect the hashes and don't allow anything pass you while not giving too large of a cushion (so you can still close , 5-7 yards in my key but differs for different player skill levels and levels on the field). For instance I was able to stay close as I could nearly recover with any WR in High school and college. Low 4.4 guy and usual hovered around 3 yards from a players. Cover 4 in High School is usually used to stop outside runs and deep passes, forces Low level QBs to throw intermediate passes (hardest passes for high School QBs) which require them to read the field and and be accurate. Understand why you run a coverage and what situations you run it for. kinda already gives you an idea of what the offense wants to do. Half the battle is knowing

One my favorite defense plays.

More of this please , NFL

MORE PLEASE!

More please 🙏

Very informative

Thank you steve

Best of the best👏

Great insight

More of this please

Love Spags and everything he did for the NY Football Giants. He ran a masterful defense in the Superbowl vs the Pats. On his second stint with the Giants, I was ecstatic he came back and was hopeful he’d take over after the McAdoo fiasco. Unfortunately he didn’t get the job and was saddened to see him leave again. A lot in life is timing. Had he stayed in NY and not left for the Rams, his first Head Coaching gig probably wouldve been the Giants after Coughlin was gone. After Shurmur was hired, I was hoping he stayed on, but am happy with our new DC James Bettcher who is very similar-only difference is Spags is a 4-3 guys vs Bettchers 3-4 base. Chiefs fans, you should be happy. Spags is loved by his guys and he isn’t one of those quiet coaches. He’s animated on the sidelines, pumps up his guys and you’ll see him cheer for the defense. I think a personable D coordinator is much better than one of those insular up-in-the-booth type coaches who doesn’t do face to face much with his players on Sunday. His defense is aggressive and fast and holds guys accountable. And he makes in game adjustments instead of the deer in the headlight look some defense coordinators have when they’re out coached and outclassed. You should be ecstatic he is your new coordinator.

Thank you that was great

More of this!

bruh, this was so interesting. I wish they would go into more detail . this makes so much sense now!

Love this

Need more!!

I’m going to take this knowledge to Madden

where can i find the full episode? maybe i'm just blind but i didin't saw a nfl film session under the category of NFL films on gamepass and i got no clue how to search there xD

Spags is great

this helped a lot

Good stuff I love it

Awesome video

More of this pls

This is why I love football

Awesome 🇺🇲

Into quarantine got me watching all these videos... Need at least an hours wortha video 🤣

good to see spags doing his thing!

Thanks

Spags is a genius… his scheme and play calling week in and week out won the chiefs the bowl this year. Dude should’ve been a head coach years ago, one of the best to ever do it no doubt

This should get some love today

Love you spags.

He just won his 4th Super Bowl crazy he has to be the greatest DC…

I would be fascinated to see what scheme you would select based on which positions on defense you were strongest at. Ie, do you play a cover 2 scheme if you really have a great mike lb but weak safeties? Or is cover 3 better with three good corners?

I'm trying to learn this stuff but it seems so hard atm

Love this video. Teaching you football too #footballfan

Thank god, I’m a brand new safety for my high school and we play cover 4 as our base and I don’t know what’s going on 😂

Love me some cover 2

Yep good vid

Turn down the music when he's talking. So distracting!

Man i wish RU-vid was in 2001 playing high school freshmen junior varsity football theses vids would of made me go pro Fyi im the teddy bruschi type

We need a new video like this

Spags is a great DC. As a giant fan, didn't want him gone but understood that we wanted to clean house. Anyone looking for a DC. He is your man