Every defensive set this year has potential for creating nano heat from multiple places. Its up to you to find
out how to set it up. I like to create universal pressure, meaning that it isn't play specific - but rather form specific.
A-Gap pressure seems to be the easiest this year, but B gap nanos exist as well, along with tremendous outside
pressure as well. My favorite thing to do is to couple A gap pressure - with an outside "cleanup" rush. This can
be created by QB contained defenders, outside blitzers, or a manual "shade" blitz - in which you use a delayed
manual rush to chase down the QB.
Here's the simplest universal I found. Its from Quarter Normal. Stack the line (fake blitz), pinch the DL, and crash the DL in.
From there, you can hot read either the MLB, SS, or both to blitz. Against a max protect, its best to send both. Against less
protected sets, just send one. Its about as simple as it gets. Its an A gap one, but a B Gap one exists for it, and the Q 3 Deep
as well, along with the Prowl with a similar setup. There really are alot of them, so hit the practice field or the lab and tune up.
I'm not going to handicap you by giving you nano setups. You're better served by using the creative machine God gave you.
Then, you owe me nothing - and anything you find is yours. If you're not finding anything, pick up VG's Pats or 46 book.
They offer tremendous insight.
When creating your defenses behind your blitz setups, remember that everything is easily beaten by good players this year.
Fades and outside manual catches eat up most zones. Inside manual catches beat up on most man, along with just about
anything attacking the edges. The good news is that good pressure makes this stuff tough, but only with doubt. Find a way to
disguise your defenses presnap, or you lose the upper hand before the game even starts.
One more thing that is important. Most nano-heat does not require that you fake blitz.
For example, from the 3-4 Normal - if you pinch the DL and crash them in, then shift the LBs left or right, and
blitz the weakside ILB (who you'll see is lined up in the A Gap) - you create a very simple 3-4 A Gap blitz that
works very well against most blocking schemes.
Shifts can change the dynamics of blitz angles for each position, but they vary from set to set. In the regular
3-4 set, shifts leave the blitzing angles unaffected. Knowing this removes both ILBs as candidates for B Gap
nano blitzers. Knowing this - how do you create a B Gap nano? What shifts are needed? Who's gonna be the
B Gap blitzer?
The 3-4 Normal is a great base for creating universal blitzes. I've found more than just a few.
How about the 4 man DL sets. I've found that with these sets, you generally need to crash the DL in - OR -
pinch the DL in, but not usually both. Remember that I'm no 4-3 guru, and I found some nice setups in a
short time. If you put a little work in, you'll find that if you can see it mentally - you can implement it.
Pressure makes every scheme even heavier. The offense has the advantage, unless the timing of a play is restricted by doubt and force.
You ever try the the 46 D Playbook?
46 Bear's FS and MLB are both A gap blitzers. With 5 DL, that leaves 5 A Gap rushers and 2 QB Contains. How long can blocking hold?
Can you build a coverage behind it? How can it be run on?
The SS is a B Gap blitzer. Can a B Gap blitzer be coupled with A Gap Pressure to create a difficult scenario or the offense? Can you build a coverage to hold up for a second with only 3 defenders? What do you need to defend for the play's first second? Is there a better way? Certainly there is once this defense has been shown. How can you tweak it to maximize the plays that your opponent will use to beat it?
What if this is abandoned only to be revisited at unexpected times? What else do you have? Can you change the outcome of the D dynamically, but still make it look like the same as the heavy blitz? Will it still get pressure limiting timing on passes? Any runs that might give it trouble. Can you move a manual defender anywhere that will improve it?
Build your defense around a weapon. What other weapons exist besides pressure? Is only giving up short, difficult gains a weapon? If so, how can this weapon be maximized?
Subject: A-Gap Pressure 
