Super Bowl Domination

Chapter 18 Gearing up
Slightly different from the offensive team, the defensive team needs to cover the entire court, so their division of labor and cooperation are more important, and they must be both professional and comprehensive.

As a result, the structure of the defensive team becomes clearer and can be simply divided into four lines, covering the entire court from near to far.

First line, defensive line.

As the name suggests, they correspond to the offensive line and stand at the front of the team. Their task is very simple, to tear open the offensive line and stop the quarterback.

Maybe it's interference, maybe it's pressure, but the best case scenario is a sack, which means tackling the quarterback to the ground and ending the offense on the spot.

Second line, linebacker.

They stand behind the defensive line, creating a space of about two to three steps, and are divided into inside linebackers and outside linebackers according to their positions. They have two main tasks.

One is to defend short passes.

The second is to defend the running ball.

In other words, according to the official tactical manual, "linebacker vs. running back" is the standard matchup.

Of course, the actual game situation may vary a lot.

In the tactical systems of the NFL and NCAA, there are two defensive systems, "4-3" and "3-4".

"4-3" means four defensive linemen cooperate with three linebackers, with more emphasis on pocket pressure. Therefore, the defensive line has two defensive ends and two defensive tackles.

"3-4" means three defensive linemen cooperate with four linebackers, focusing more on short pass zone defense. The defensive line has one defensive tackle and two defensive ends. Here, the defensive tackle is the single arrow position, so it is also called the tip.

The two defensive systems have their own advantages and disadvantages, and the victory or defeat depends entirely on the level of the coach.

The University of Alabama uses the "3-4" tactics.

Third line, cornerback.

They are like wings, standing at both ends of the defensive line and close to the sidelines. There are no regulations on their specific positions, which are generally adjusted according to the wide receivers.

It can be seen here that their task is to entangle the wide receivers and cover the short and intermediate pass areas; but occasionally, they also need to match up with the tight ends and running backs.

Fourth line, safety.

They stand at the team's rear base, which is the last line of defense, but unlike goalkeepers in football, they can move freely in the backcourt and fill in the gaps at any time.

Depending on the focus of their functions, security guards are divided into mobile guards and force guards.

The free safety is more agile and the strong safety is stronger, so the strong safety is equivalent to half a linebacker, responsible for covering the tight end and running back; the free safety is more mobile and flexible, and a top free safety can cover different positions of the team and make the defense complete.

In general, all teams now have two cornerbacks and two safeties, but whether the safeties are fully equipped with a free safety and a strong safety depends on the coach.

The most intuitive one was yesterday’s tryout.

Allen, a defensive end, his job is to defend running backs and attack quarterbacks.

Foster, linebacker.

Humphrey, cornerback.

Jackson, the safety, is a free safety.

The four players represent the four lines of the defense, lined up from near to far.

Generally speaking, running backs would be intercepted when they reached Allen's position, or at most Foster's position; and Humphrey and Jackson were not good at dealing with running backs.

However, they did not expect that they completely underestimated Levi's personal ability, especially his ability to change direction, so that Allen missed consecutive tackles and not only lost two consecutive 50-yard touchdowns; but the third time, even after completing the tackle, Levi still forced him to advance ten yards.

No wonder when they arrived at the training ground today, everyone looked at Levi as if they had seen Godzilla. In fact, if we simplify it a little bit and divide the defense into two areas, it is not a bad idea -

Frontcourt; backcourt.

The front field is managed by the defensive line and linebackers; the back field is managed by the cornerbacks and safeties.

As for how to layout, how to cooperate, and how to connect, this is a moment that tests the coach's ability. The complexity of defensive tactics is no less than that of offense.

All of these make rugby a sport with special charm.

Individual heroism is often seen in other team sports, where one person's strength turns the tide and overturns the situation, like a peerless hero appearing on the field on a colorful cloud. However, it is very rare in a rugby stadium. It only appears occasionally, but the strength of the entire team is still indispensable behind it.

From his past life to this life, Levi has always been fighting alone, struggling with himself and competing with himself, constantly challenging his own limits, but now it is different.

This is fresh and special, a completely new challenge.

To Levi, it was like Lego.

layer. Another layer.

One piece. Another piece.

First, deconstruct the offense and defense, scatter them into parts all over the floor, figure out the responsibilities and roles of each part, and then put them together again.

In a rugby game, one move affects the entire body.

If you only focus on yourself and fail to see the overall tactical picture, you will often fall into the dilemma of "not being able to see the true face of Mount Lu". You will repeatedly hit the wall but have no idea why you hit the wall, so naturally you will not be able to solve the problem.

Of course, seeing the overall situation clearly does not mean that the problem can be solved, but it at least means that you will not fall into a vicious circle.

Originally, Levi was thinking of just coming to work and punching in, but now he has changed his mind. It feels like getting a complicated Rubik's Cube. It is fun to restore it to its original state, but it is far less interesting than exploring the principles and solving the puzzle. This makes Levi start to get excited.

This spring is quite interesting.

boom!
There was another loud bang, and Allen grabbed Jacobs, fell to the ground headfirst, and knocked Jacobs down hard, just like in a video game.

Levi couldn't help but lick his lips, as if he could sense the smell of blood, "Wait, why did the pocket break so quickly this time?"

Clark looked at the slightly raised corners of Levi's mouth, with a hint of excitement in his eyes, and blinked: Is this guy a vampire?
"Fifth substitute?" Levi called out when he didn't get a response.

Clark came back to his senses and took a deep breath, "Oh, because of the raid. The defense team chose the raid."

"Raid?" Levi thought about it carefully.

The linebackers, who were supposed to be waiting for the running backs or the short pass, took the initiative and moved forward, joined the defensive line, and forced a breakthrough with their numerical advantage, so that the pocket of the offensive line was directly broken. Hurts was like a lamb trapped by wolves and had no chance.

In a hurry, Hurts hurriedly threw the football to Jacobs in an attempt to avoid a sack.

But this move was seen through by Allen. Allen started again on the spot, and Jacobs was hit in the chest. There was nowhere to escape, and Allen ended this attack.

"Haha. Interesting." Levi smiled.

It seems that the defensive team is not completely passive. They can also plan ahead and take the initiative. This is also a very obvious difference between rugby and football and basketball.

In football and basketball games, the defense is often in a passive situation. Their goal/basket is on the other side of the court. If they want to attack, they must cross half court again. But in rugby games, the defense can launch an "attack", start from the spot, turn passivity into initiative, and even score points.

Yes, the defensive team can also score points, which is the interesting part of the turn-based positional offense and defense.

Clark looked at Levi's smile and couldn't help but shudder. He swallowed tremblingly: You, seem to be a little bit wrong.

My dear friends, if you want to keep reading this book, just read the latest chapter every day. Catch-up reading is really important, especially for a niche like rugby. I would like to thank you all here!
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(End of this chapter)