Dime Package Coverage for the 4-2-5 Defense

By Mike Nahum
Associate Head Coach/Safeties
Marvin Ridge High School (NC)
Twitter: @coachnahum60

As a base 4-2-5 defense, we utilize 4 down linemen, 2 linebackers, 3 safeties and 2 cornerbacks and base out of quarters coverage. Our front six is set separately from our back five. Since the ball is on the hash at least 80% of the time or more in high school, we focus on teaching from the hash the majority of the time. Our defense is field/boundary based since we declare passing strength to the field most of the time.

These 3 players line up to the Boundary/away from the passing strength.

BC: Boundary Corner

Buck: Boundary Inside Linebacker

BS: Boundary Safety

These 4 players line up to the field/to the passing strength.

FC: Field Corner

Mike: Field Inside Linebacker

Rover: Field Low Safety

FS: Field High Safety

Our Dime (D) package is a personnel grouping where we take our NT (A gap defender) out and replace him with a Dime. We then simply slide our DT (B gap defender) to a head up Nose (0 Technique). This simply puts us in a 3-2-6. Nothing more.

This allows all our players to play in normal alignment keeping their reads and keys same as. In high school, in my opinion, this is the cornerstone to having success.

There are four reasons we needed to have this change up in our arsenal and they are:

1) Provide the ability to play man coverage and drop 8 using a DB rather than a LB on their receivers. 

2) Provide you the ability to stay in immediate safety force (Rover/Dime) while staying 2-high.

3) Provide multiple looks with Buccaneer front, while matching skill on skill with our Dime-preventing a LB from having to play in space. 

4) Eliminates having a skill player on the sideline while having a static 4-man front vs. the spread or on passing downs. 

In addition, I will discuss this package vs. 10P 2x2 and 10P 3x1.

Our Dime (D) is generally our second-best Rover (Low Safety). The Dime (D) will generally play to the boundary unless coverage dictates something different.

First call will be Bronco. Bronco is a 3-man rush and dropping 8 defenders. We will play 2 coverages from Bronco.

Bronco Blue:

This will be called in our Dime Package to drop 8 defenders and rushing 3 playing Cover 4 (Blue) behind it.

Versus 2x2

• DE’s 5-techniques
• DT: 0-technique (Rush Opposite of Center Turn)
• Mike/Buck are vertical/hook defenders
• Rover plays flats to field/Dime plays flats to boundary
• FC Match Vertical (MV) #1 player to field
• FS Match Vertical 2 player to field
• BS Match Vertical #1 player to boundary
• BC Match Vertical #2 player to boundary

Versus 3x1

• DE’s 5-techniques
• DT: 0-technique (Rush Opposite of Center Turn)
• Mike/Buck bump to trips and are vertical/hook defenders
• Rover plays flats to field/Dime plays flats to boundary
• FC Match Vertical #1 player to field
• FS Match Vertical #2 player to field
• BS Match Vertical #3 player to Field
• BC Match Vertical #1 player to boundary