The growing importance of nickel defense/defender

[FartWaffles 1,857]

http://www.si.com/nfl/2014/08/12/NFL-nickel-defense-slot-cornerbacks-chris-harris-bradley-roby-jimmie-ward

 

Through the long history of the NFL, offenses and defenses have engaged in cycles of attack and retreat. There's been a Bear Front for every Wing-T, a zone blitz for every West Coast concept. And lately, from the high school level up, offenses are stretching the field to its figurative breaking point, and defenses to their literal breaking points, with multi-receiver sets and motion that would have been inconceivable a generation ago. In the last decade, NFL offenses have adopted ideas from college spread offenses and put them to use in record-setting displays of scoring and tempo. In response, NFL defenses are pulling linebackers and defensive linemen off the field to use extra defensive backs -- and they're not just doing it on obvious passing downs. In fact, you could say that the specialized passing defenses of yesterday's NFL are the base defenses of today -- and tomorrow.

 

In 2011, NFL teams lined up with three or more receivers 49 percent of the time, per Football Outsiders' charting metrics. In 2012, that number climbed up to 51 percent, and last season, it rose to 56 percent. A future in which the three-receiver set is the norm has arrived. Correspondingly, defenses have upped their usage of nickel defenses, the set in which five defensive backs patrol the field (generally at the expense of a formerly indispensable linebacker). Teams ran base (with four defensive backs) 48 percent of the time in 2011, 45 percent in '12 and 40 percent in '13. Nickel sets increased from 40 to 44 to 49 percent over that same three-year span. Nickel is the new base defense, a changing of the guard that was an inevitable offshoot of an uptick in offensive creativity.

Check out that link for the rest of the article. So obviously today's NFL has become pass happy, thus a lot of defenses have been running their nickel package for more than half of their defensive snaps.

 

That being the case, the slot defender has evolved into a very important position. The days of plugging in a fast and undersized corner to cover the slot seem long gone. After reading this article what are your thoughts on the position, and do you believe the position is as underpaid as I think it is? Do you see slot defenders going higher in the draft in the near future?

 

Anyways I thought it was a very interesting article and wanted to see what TGP thinks. Also do you trust the slot defender that is currently on the team you root for?

Edited August 15, 2014 by FartWaffles

[Bucman 891]

NCB has always been important in Tampa and we had one of the better players this decade manning it. Now we have no clue who is going to be the NCB this year. But I can't trust Leonard Johnson, Mike Jenkins or Gorrer there.

[seanbrock 1,684]

Shorter passes and passes across the middle are way easier to complete when a receiver is pretty much guaranteed a free release like they are now days. Offenses have started to figure out how to best take advantage of that and one of those ways is with a slot WR. Defenses have had to adjust.

[Attyla the Hawk 197]

This has been one of the tenets of Seattle's defense from the moment Pete was hired. And we've gone about it in several different ways.

 

When Pete first arrived, he started by implementing a 3 safety package. At the time, we didn't have quality corners (Kelly Jennings and a end of career Marcus Trufant). Seattle was looking for ways to add a package that could both work as a base defense variant -- remaining good against the run, while being capable of operating as our nickel.

 

The biggest key, was how to cover well, while still being able to defend the run effectively. Seattle immediately set about adding pieces to the defense that would do precisely that.

 

1. Earl Thomas really just fell into our laps in the first draft (Thank you very much Philly for trading up and taking Brandon Graham). That was the first and most important piece to the defensive puzzle.
2. Added cornerbacks with size. This was a bit of a gamble. Cover corners are such a rare commodity. But Pete theorized that he could take corners with lesser coverage skills, and teach them how to leverage length to compensate. Pete wanted physical corners. Corners that can physically win one on one matchups with running backs in the open field. Seattle loves corners that are great tacklers. The selections Seattle has made leads me to believe that could be the very foremost trait that we look for. Which is very atypical of how corners are evaluated.
3. Add good coverage linebackers. Seattle very much has a speed requirement at this position. The only LB on this team that doesn't run a sub 4.5 in the unit is KJ Wright. But he has tremendous coverage skills and has ridiculous length to compensate. He was the absolute key to Seattle destroying the Saints by single covering and shutting down Jimmy Graham completely.

It's pretty strongly assumed that in 2012, Seattle coveted 2 players in the first round of that draft. Mark Barron and Luke Kuechly. Both of which fit our hybrid 'nickel base' concept. Unfortunately both players were selected before we had a chance to take them.

 

Seattle's defense in the back seven really is based heavily on the concept of how they will fit in a nickel situation. Our selections in both the secondary and the LB corps all have to do with role flexibility. That trend has been undeniable over the course of Pete's tenure here. It's always been about how to maximize the nickel look. It's no surprise that Seattle selects at least one LB and one CB in every draft like clockwork. Mainly because they can get hybrid project prospects in day three with few competitors for the pick.

 

I suspect, that Seattle would shift to a 3 safety base if Earl ever went down. His quality really allows us to 'cheat' our personnel package to a more run stopping base nickel. That's where Seattle was headed in 2010. Thomas' development and emergence has allowed us to kind of table that concept.

[butta54 371]

I actually believe slot defenders are overrated. I didn't read the article but this is one of those "trend topics" that I talk about often.

 

With the league in the middle of a heavy passing cycle (that will return to a heavy run cycle) every fan is under the idea that teams are playing nickel 90% of the time and need a shutdown guy to walk up against the slot and lock them down. That is not the case. A number of teams (especially with good defense) will run base sets and nickel in obvious passing situations or to give a change up look.

 

The concepts haven't changed. Teams didn't create defenses before with huge holes against the seam and middle area. A defense is built to cover that area....HOWEVER with offenses liking to space out and utilize that slot defenses have begin to RE-EMPHASIZE the idea of jamming slots off the line or getting under their routes so they don't have free routes down or across the field. That can be done by a nickel corner, a strong side LB, or a safety down in the box. It really is all about what type of athletes you have at what position.

 

The Saints used a "big nickel" because the personnel at safety gave them better athleticism than their LBs. So fans assume everyone NEEDS a three safety defense. Not the case. My Bears are pretty even about using nickel and using our base LBs to play the slot. Seahawks use a cover 3 shell and have Kam down in the box most of the time. Its all about what you have.

 

Slots aren't impossible to defend. Most of the heavy damage is done against a defense that doesn't bring someone over them so they use a quick bubble OR with very quick timing routes that attack zones. The key to defending slots is knocking the timing off. There aren't alot of teams coming out and lining up man to man and letting their slot defender try to lock down. A slot defender 9/10 is re-routing the slot to throw off timing and that is about it.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

^well said.

[Glanvilles Grits 142]

I've noticed about 75% of teams are hitting the field in the nickel majority of the time. It's rare when we see 3 Linebackers on the field in the 4-3 base anymore outside of first down.

[the Lions fan 19]

11 safeties? lets just skip all the bullshit.