Arrowhead Pride
The Eagles had a very specific defensive game plan in the Super Bowl — and the Chiefs did not have an answer.
There were a lot of problems with the offense in the Super Bowl. It started up front with the offensive line, which couldn’t protect against a four-man rush. The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t send a single blitz in this game, trusting their front four to dominate the game, and they did exactly that.
The Eagles were able to win from all angles. Both tackles were getting pushed back into the pocket constantly. Mike Caliendo struggled with Milton Williams's speed. Jalen Carter was able to feast on Trey Smith. The Eagles made it impossible for Patrick Mahomes to feel any comfort in the pocket, which eroded his passing mechanics and footwork.
However, while watching the game, I knew it couldn’t be just that. There had to be something within the pass coverage that was also offending to sputter. When watching the broadcast film, it can be challenging to know what a defense is doing from a coverage sense, so I went back and watched the All-22 to see what happened from a coverage sense.
After watching the tape, I came away with a clear understanding of what the Kansas City Chiefs need to address this offseason at wide receiver. Before we get into that, let’s explain what the Eagles were doing from a coverage perspective.
The Eagles’ coverage game plan was quite simple: they sat back in zone shells—particularly Cover 4—the entire game.
Cover 4 is what it sounds like. You have your four secondary defenders take one-fourth of the field, allowing them to match routes downfield and limit explosive plays. There are weaknesses within the zone — quick underneath throws to the outside, getting a good matchup with a linebacker against an underneath wide receiver or being able to vacate one of the four deep defenders to open a one-on-one over the middle of the field.
Some teams — such as the Eagles — play Cover 4 better than the others, particularly from a coverage sense. It’s difficult to get their four deep defenders to have coverage breakdowns. There are still openings in the coverage, but in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s mind, he’s willing to concede underneath throws if you can sustain entire drives with them. He takes the gamble that his front four will eventually win quickly enough, or you’ll make some mistake offensively, which puts you in a disadvantageous spot on third down. This week, the offensive line was the issue in maintaining consistency offensively.
The Chiefs had trouble beating that style of defense, but while watching the film, I noticed a trend: they had trouble beating one specific variation of Cover 4.
In a Cover 4 defense, when an offense aligns in a 3-by-1 (or 4-by-1) formation, the defense can use a “poach” call. A poach call is a variation of backside where the backside safety on the one receiver side turns...
