Coach ,

Kyle Caksey’s NFL experience as both an assistant offensive line coach and a running backs coach (Bengals, Lions Jaguars), has allowed him to have a unique perspective on protection because he's worked with the six players who protect the quarterback.

In today’s pass rush world of deceiving alignments that allow players to come from everywhere aka “sims and creepers,” having a sound system of handling pressure or simulated pressure is critical in allowing the QB to remain upright and deliver the ball to move the chains and put points on the board.

We’ve seen clinic after clinic on how to use sims, creepers, and fire zones. Here’s a list of some of the recent ones I’ve moderated:

Mike Pettine (Saints) - Double A Gap Mug Pressures

Adam Gaylor (Jenks HS) - Creepers and Simulated Pressures

Dan Lanning (Oregon) - Simulated Pressures: Schemes, Planning, and Technique

Bryan Collins (LIU) - Zone Pressures from the 4 - 2- 5

Austin Armstrong (Southern Miss) - Simulated Pressure

Brent Pry (Virginia Tech) - 5 Man Pressures

Don Brown (U Mass) - Blitz Simulators

John Bowes (New Hampshire) - Hot Pressures

That’s just a sampling of all that’s been shared in the off-season. If you haven’t seen these types of pressures or simulations, you certainly will, so having a plan for them is crucial to the success of your passing game.  As I’ve shared before, a quote from a friend of mine, “The quarterback can’t pass if he’s on his ass.

Coach Caskey shared the system he uses at the COOL Clinic this past May, and his clinic presentation is a tremendous resource on how to handle “exotic” pressure.  To begin, he starts with a definition of exotic pressures. He emphasizes how important it is for the OL Coach and RB Coach to be on the same page so the info is consistent from room to room (click on image for video):

Video: Types of Exotic Pressures

Before you can scheme the exotic blitzes up, you need to understand and plan against what the opponent is doing.  He illustrates this by sharing past game plans and drawings in the next video, and explains how taking the approach of compartmentalizing allows you to have a concise plan for each type of pressure you see (click on image for video):

Video: Compartmentalizing

The understanding begins to help you formulate the plan. Coach Caskey shares an example of a man pressure with a “peel” defensive end, and shows how one answer is to put the tackle into a full slide (click on image for video):

Video: Peel

Another example is from KC vs. Indianapolis. Coach Caskey notes for any defensive coaches that Matt Eberflus and the Colts (now HC of the Bears) are the best at some of these types of pressures and should be studied. This example is of “Double Trouble” with a vacated Fire Zone (click on image for video):

Video: Double Trouble

The season makes the coach a problem solver. Having the right resource is a big part of being able to find the right answers, and what Coach Caskey has put together certainly is valuable in that process.

Always be growing!

Coach Grabowski and the Coaches Clinic Community

P.S. Thank you, Coach Caskey and COOL Clinic for sharing clips “Game Planning for Exotic Pressures” It will definitely come in handy this season as you work to figure out your plan to block the exotic pressures you will see.