3 Mistakes You Didn't Realize You Were Making in Press Man Coverage

Hey Defender of the Airways,

By now, we’re all aware of some of the common mistakes made when playing press man coverage. These include things like opening the gate, having your eyes too high, and getting on your heels. However, even after addressing these issues, you may still encounter problems from time to time that can be frustrating. In this article, we’ll discuss three small things that you may be doing wrong that could be affecting your press man reps.

1. Using the wrong hand at the line of scrimmage

I get it; sometimes, using the hand nearest to the wide receiver when he is getting outside your body seems smart. After all, it’s the hand with the best chance of touching the receiver, and your coach is always saying, “get a jam.” However, relying on the near hand can be costly in the long run. When you use the near hand, chances are you will plant that same foot. If that foot is planted, your hips are locked, initiating a bad chain of events.

If you were to take a picture of what that looks like, it wouldn’t be good. The receiver is facing down the field, and you are facing in the opposite direction. Unless that receiver is strapped to a 45-pound plate, he’s going to beat you down the field. There’s always the chance that you got a strong enough jam with one hand to knock him off balance and give yourself a chance to open up. However, even for a risk-taker like myself, this is far too risky. Instead, make good use of your kick slide, and use your opposite hand to jam the wide receiver when close enough to do so. This allows your hips to open and keeps you over the top or at least even with the wide receiver as he progresses down the field. I have great information on perfecting your kick slide in the All Eyes DB Camp members area.

2. Not controlling the space during the route

It is a common mistake for young defensive backs to want to glue themselves to the wide receiver as early as possible during the route process. Understandably, you think the ball may be coming at any moment. However, experience will tell you that »»»»»»»> continue reading here

Have questions or topics you’d like me to cover? Reply to this email or connect with me on social media—I’d love to hear from you!

Stay sharp, keep grinding, and always keep your eyes on the ball.

Chad Wilson
Founder, All Eyes DB Camp
@alleyesdbcamp on Instagram