MONSOON

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2-High 4-Under Defense

"Inspired by, but not a replica of, the Mike Macdonald (HC) / Seattle Seahawks defense."

+ Multipe fronts : 3-4 & 4-3

+ Primarily based out of a Big Nickel look (3-3-5 Over Flex)

+ Heavy usage of Big Dime (2-3-6) and Nickel 2-4

+ Focuses on a consistent 2-High shell, and 3-Deep 4-Under cover system + Looks to build off of pre-snap disguise & post-snap versatility

+ 2-High versions for Single High concepts like 3 & 1 (3 Buzz Match, 3 Cloud, 1 Robber, etc.)

+ Lots of Match cover usage (Cover 6, 3 Match, & 3 Buzz Match especially)

+ Inverted Cover 2's and 3's (Tampa), & Rolled coverages to add layering to playcalling

+ Lots of Sim Pressures, to maintain 7 in coverage, while providing versatility

+ High usage of 3-Deep Fire Zones to turn up the heat while still in Match Coverage

+ A few Cover 0 & Cover 1 Blitzes to keep the playcalling honest

+ Bench Blitz for going against Tight & Condensed sets, for that trademark Witherspoon pressure

+ Leans a lot on the Front 4 for a pass rush presence

+ Leans on rangey Linebackers to cover TEs, Backs, and inside receivers.

+ Schemed up to have your SS1 play all over the field (SS, Nickel, & even LB)

Scouting Report

Hybrid

Fronts

Disguised

Coverages

Simulated

Pressures

FORMATIONS / SETS

4-3

OVER SOLID* TITE LEO 3-4

OVER OVER ED (4-3) TITE 5 TECH UNDER* 4-4

SPLIT

2-5

OVER WIDE (4-3)

3-3-5

OVER FLEX*

NICKEL

2-4*

2-4 SINGLE MUG

2-4 DOUBLE MUG

2-4 LOAD MUG

3-3 ODD (MINT) 3-3 CUB*

WIDE

DIME

2-3-6*

3-2 RUSH

3-2 SINGLE MUG

LOAD WEAK

PREVENT

3 DEEP

GOAL LINE

5-3

6-2

IDEAL ARCHETYPES

POSITION	ARCHETYPE(S)	ROLE
LEDGE	Edge Setter / Pass Rushing DT*	LEDGE / DT3*
REDGE	Speed Rusher / Power Rusher	REDGE / RRE
DT	Gap Specialist / Pure Power	NT / DT1/ DT2
SAM	Thumper / Signal Caller / ATH Edge*	RLE / 3-4 EDGEs
MIKE	Signal Caller / Thumper	MIKE / SAM / SUBLB
WILL	Lurker / ATH / Signal Caller	WILL / SUBLB
CB	Boundary / Zone / Field	LCB / RCB / SLCB
FS	Coverage Specialist / Zone CB* / Boundary CB*	FS
SS	Hybrid / Boundary CB* / ATH Lurker*	SS / SLCB* / SUBLB*

Notes :

DT : Being so multiple-front based, I want to account for the various DL groupings that will appear. There are 3 tackle fronts (3-4, 3-3 Odd), 5-man fronts using 3 tackles (3-3 Cub, 4-3 Tite Leo), and the traditional 4-man fronts using 2 tackles. Playing a lot of subpackages, I wanted to balance the pass rushers out on the edges with run stoppers on the inside, with Gap Specialists. Pure Power is another shout as an alternative NT, and having a Pass Rushing DT as DT3 compliments them both nicely for 3 tackle fronts.
EDGE : The scheme primarily bounces between Sub-Personnel but does use some traditional fronts scattered throughout, so that is why I specify for Edge Setter for the strongside EDGE. I wanted an in-between kind of EDGE for the in-between kind of fronts, when not running those bulky 3 tackle fronts or the quicker Rush End fronts in Nickel & Dime. Also creates a nice rotation up front when the DC is setup correctly, regardless of any W&T or auto-subs settings.
SAM : This a developmental position, and there's no far & away best choice, they all have their pros & cons. Signal Callers have a great mix of size, athleticism, and run/pass capabilities making for great 3-4 OLBs right away. Thumpers have good athleticism, great strength & run stopping ability, but need time to develop both their coverage & pass rush skills. Converting ATH Speed Rushers is a cheat code for a year or two, using them solely as an RRE/RLE and upgrading their pass rush for cheap before moving them over to REDG full-time. Or, you could try and upgrade their coverage to a respectable level to stay at SAM to fill both roles, RLE/OLB.
MIKE : Personal opinion, but I feel like the goal for every MIKE should be a Signal Caller. As they can handle coverage just fine, but also have run stopping abilities & pass rush capabilities with room to grow for cheap.
WILL : Lurkers can really work when placed anywhere on the second level, because of athleticism, but my personal opinion is that in a perfect world, they live at WILL. With the added athleticism to Signal Callers, they can also work here, but I like them better as MIKE and Lurkers here at WILL.
CB : I have Boundary & Zone corners listed, for their +tackling ratings. Field is also a good shout for SLCB, but I still hold Boundary in comparison. They're the best tackling CBs, good size/speed, Man Coverage abilities, & the biggest draw for them in this scheme is their Quick Jump. There are a lot of Nickel & Dime blitzes, coming from that Slot, but not just limited to those, as Bench Blitz is a staple sending outside CBs vs. Tight splits.
FS : Although this is a from of 3-Deep, it's not your typical form like Cover 3, so you don't need a centerfielder at FS. But you should get one anyways, even if just for abilities alone, like Ballhawk & Robber, as the FS is the only safety of the 3 that is consistently playing & staying deep from the 2-High look. Having the read & react abilities, are a huge plus in SIM.
SS : Hybrid safeties are just the best, literally one of the best bang for your buck archetypes to manually upgrade, as they can pretty much do it all, and their coverage upgrades are tied together for cost saving purposes. For recruiting purposes, Hybrid/Boundary are both pretty similar as far as incoming freshmen, and can be used somewhat interchangeably to fill holes in your roster. Developing ATH/Lurkers to play here, for a more Box Specialist feel & physical playstyle can also work, as the SS1 is often asked to play LB in Dime 2-3-6. But I just think Hybrid players handle those duties perfectly fine, while being able to handle additional ones a Box safety can't, the only downside is their physical size is often smaller than what you'd want in that role. (Emmanwori role)

DEPTH CHART SETUP

POSITION	STARTER
REDG	Best Pass Rushing EDGE
LEDG	Better Balanced / Run Stopping EDGE
DT1	#1 DT or Best Run Stuffing DT
DT2	#2 DT or Best Pass Rushing DT
DT3	#3 DT or Best Run Stuffing EDGE (slides up to DT2 if there is DT/NT overlap)
SAM	#3 Linebacker or Better Run Stopping Linebacker (MIKE)
MIKE	#1 Linebacker or More Balanced Linebacker (MIKE)
WILL	#2 Linebacker or Better Coverage Linebacker (MIKE/WILL)
CB1 (LCB)	#1 CB, plays left side of the field (Most often matched up vs. #1 WR)
CB2 (RCB)	#2 CB, plays right side of the field (Most often matched up vs. #2 WR)
FS1	#1 FS or Best Hybrid/Coverage Safety
SS1	#1 SS, "Star" , Best Hybrid/Box Safety (plays Nickel in 3-3-5 & LB in 2-3-6)
SS2	Next Best Hybrid/Coverage Safety (plays a lot as the 2-High SS)
RRE	Second choice between #1 REDGE & #1 SAM
RLE	#1 REDGE or #1 SAM (preference: plays standup "Jack" in 3-3 Odd)
RDT1	Best Pass Rushing DT (N/A in CFB27)
RDT2	Best Run Stopping DE (N/A in CFB27)
NT	#1 NT or Biggest/Strongest/Highest-tiered Grip Breaker
SUBLB1	Best MIKE/WILL (Majority of LB Snaps)
SUBLB2	Best Coverage Linebacker (Good amount of LB Snaps)
SLCB1	Highest rated non-starter CB
SLCB2	Next Highest rated non-starter CB or FS2/SS3
3-4 LEDGE	#1 JACK (SAM), Pass Rush/Drop Cover capabilities (via Formation Subs)
3-4 REDGE	#2 SAM (MIKE), Run Stop/Drop Cover capabilities (via Formation Subs)

Notes :	SAMs & REDGs are the primary pass rushers in this scheme, with DTs being skewed towards the run, so I prefer to use LEDG as common ground between the two, and play my run stopping EDGEs or pass rushing DTs at that spot. MIKE & WILL pair together and play an equal amount of snaps, but the SAM plays only in the few 4-3 snaps, but also gets substituted in to play 3-4 EDGE. SS is arguably the most important position to "get right", through either recruiting, position change, & development. Sometimes it takes a combination of all three to get the perfect fit for a guy who needs to fill a lot of boxes; being that he plays 2-High safety, slides down to the slot in 3-3-5, has Man/Zone responsibilites, and is expected to be a tremendous tackler kicking inside to play LB in the 2-3-6. Rush End is a personal preference, as to whether you want to used your SAM specialist or REDG, as your standup "Jack" (RLE) in Nickel 3-3 Odd. Mostly for aesthetic reasoning, but will result in a handful more opportunites per game. With sub-personnel, I opt for using the better overall/balanced LB (MIKE) rather than the more traditional approach of using the Lurker (WILL). Mainly, it's because this scheme uses 2-3-6 as it's primary Dime look, which is already using the SS to replace the SUBLB2, so is essentially the same role serving the same purpose. So to avoid the redundency of having two of the same player out there, I wanted to have a more stout defender in that position to play alongside the SS. Also, immersion-wise, this way the Signal Caller can get more snaps & stats, it doesn't make much sense for the Green Dot to miss out on 15% of the snaps to another guy at his same position.