Skip to main content
Open Lab

Cover 8

Inverse Cover 6 / Cover 2 Field + Cover 4 Boundary

Cover 2 Field / Cover 4 Boundary
Open interactiveTest in Matchup Lab
DEF Cover 8 Hybrid / match
Cover 8: Cover 2 Field / Cover 4 BoundaryDEEP ½: Free Safety. Deep Half (Field Side).DEEP ½DEEP ¼: Strong Safety. Deep Quarter (Inside, Boundary).DEEP ¼DEEP ¼: Cornerback. Deep Quarter (Boundary Side).DEEP ¼FLAT: Cornerback. Flat (Cover 2 / Field Side).FLATHOOK: Will Linebacker. Underneath (Field Side).HOOKHOOK: Sam Linebacker. Underneath (Boundary Side).HOOKHOOK: Mike Linebacker. Middle Hook.HOOKLOSCOVER 8COVER 2 FIELD / COVER 4 BOUNDARYCBCBFSSSWMSETTE
  • Deep
  • Hook / curl
  • Flat
  • Rush
FIG. 1Cover 8: Cover 2 Field / Cover 4 Boundary. Each defender is drawn in the color of his job; the numbers match the responsibilities list.

Cover 8 is the inverse of Cover 6: Cover 2 (halves) to the wide side of the field and Cover 4 (quarters) to the boundary. From a two-high pre-snap shell, it looks identical to Cover 4, Cover 2, or Cover 6, the QB cannot distinguish the actual coverage until post-snap. The field side gets two-deep protection to handle the wider space, while the boundary side uses quarters to pattern-match in the compressed area where receivers have less room to operate.

Responsibilities

7 IN COVERAGE

Numbers match the keys on the field. Tap a defender to see his rules.

  • Front · 4-man rush2 ends and 2 tackles rush the passer

Weak spots

5
  • Identifying the split exposes the schemeHigh
  • Field-side deep seam (Cover 2 weakness)High
  • Boundary quarters seam between CB and SSHigh
  • Motion/shift to test the coverage boundaryMedium
  • Post-wheel to the field-side Cover 2Medium

Best attacks

Pre-snap motion to identify which side is Cover 2 vs quarters. Attack the field side with post-wheel or smash (Cover 2 weaknesses). Attack the boundary with seam routes between the CB and SS quarters. Flood the boundary between the two coverage styles.

What beats Cover 8

0 CONCEPTS

No concept in the library rates better than a toss-up against Cover 8.

Open the win matrix