Line Crashes

[flavaham]

Do line crashes actually do anything? It's really hard for me to figure out if they are working well for me. Also how do you decide which way to crash? I use the Pats mostly so I run a 3-4 which I'm told relies on crashes to stop the run. You get the point...

[Michura]

It depends on what your LB's are doing. You can use the the crashes to either balance your attack or completely flood one side with defenders.

I also find that crashes are great for the 3-4 solid.

Try this:

3-4 Solid String Pinch
- crash right
- pinch LB's
- you will want to manually control the ROLB (leftmost OLB) to make tackles in case they run to the left

This will give you good penetration for runs going to the right side and some play to the left but will rely on you to make the tackles if they go left.