Jordan Thomas - Defensive Line: Twists and Stunts

The pass rush is a fundamental piece of any great defense. In this defensive line course, Coach Jordan Thomas of San Diego State University dives into the fundamentals of the pass rush, including alignments and get-offs. He also speaks about the relationships between the hips and an effective pass rush.

He starts the course off by explaining the PreSnap Musts. For the defensive linemen, these consist of Get-Off, Alignment, and Rush Angle. He details out that if they master these three things, there will have the best chance for success in rushing the quarterback. For the get-off, it is the first fundamental to being a successful pass rusher. This includes mental weight, replacing the hands, firing off the ball, closing distance, etc. The get-off is one of the most important functions for defensive linemen to make explosive plays.

Then, he breaks down the Alignment. It will determine the Offensive Line Set. He explains that the alignment and tilt angles will help with your rushing and techniques. There are obviously multiple types of alignment and he breaks them down for you in this course! Having the right alignment can easily give your defensive linemen a competitive advantage to make plays against the offense. He goes into further detail explaining what Techniques to use based on the alignment your players are in. If you want your defense to have an advantage and make groundbreaking plays, then you need to get this course.

Next, he explains the importance of the Hip Relationship. He shows off a clip with an improper hip relationship where a player can get moved wherever the offensive linemen wants. He also details out different maneuvers using the hips to help your defensive linemen successfully pass rush. 

Coach Thomas then breaks down Countering at the Level and Pass Rushing. He uses practice film cutups to show how to properly counter at the level and his rushing techniques. He explains to be consistent for pass rushing. If it isn't broke then don't fix it. 

If you want to have a successful defensive line, then this course is a must!