With a 2-high safety defense, and a 7 man front, your coverages really open up. But the most popular coverage to play out of this look is still probably the Cover 2. In running the Cover 2 defense, you are assigning the Safeties to pass coverage. They are each in charge of a deep half of the field. Meanwhile, you are assigning your Corners to cover the flats. In covering the flats, the corners also become involved in the running game and are responsible for contain.
In a press Cover 2 defense, the corner must be aligned up on the line of scrimmage, and in an outside shade of the #1 Wide Receiver. He needs to have his inside foot splitting the crotch of the wide receiver. The purpose of this is to deny an outside release, where he has no help. The corner must remember that all of his help is to the inside – the Safety and the Outside Linebacker.
The corner must learn to “feel” the Wide Receiver as he jams him coming off the ball, and look through him to his run key. The run key for the Corner will be the end man on the line of scrimmage to Quarterback. On the first movement by the wide receiver, the corner wants to jam is outside arm into the outside shoulder of the WR, and assure that he goes inside. If the Wide Receiver is releasing inside, the Corner will take 3 steps with him in his pocket, and then drop his outside foot back to square and settle into the Flat Zone, looking for another receiver coming into his Zone.
Versus a straight vertical release, the Corner should stay with him in his hip pocket while keeping eyes open for a second receiver coming into his zone.
It is important for the Cornerback to understand why he cannot run more than 3 steps with an inside release. There are a couple of keys. First, if a #1 Receiver is headed inside, it is very likely that a #2 or #3 is coming outside to occupy the flats. Secondly, since most inside routes like the Slant are a timing route, a good hard jam for 3 steps will have successfully thrown the timing off, and the route is no longer a threat. Understanding what the offense is trying to do overall, and not just playing your area in a vacuum, will help any player on the field to be better.
The Safeties, meanwhile, are responsible for the deep half of the field. A pattern reading team would have the Safeties read the #2 Receiver, while other teams would simply have the safety climb vertically with eyes on the Quarterback. Both can be successful, so coach what you feel most comfortable with and what your players will be most successful doing.
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