National Football League

San Diego isn't actually running a full-fledged 3-4 defense

Published May. 14, 2015 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

A traditional 3-4 defense wants to eat up blocks with three big down linemen, letting the linebackers clean up and make plays behind it.

That's not exactly what the Chargers do, so general manager Tom Telesco avoided labeling the Bolts as a 3-4 team after last season.

Defensive coordinator John Pagano backed him up on that.

“I’ve always been taught to get guys on an edge and being able to win those one-on-one matchups in those situations,” Pagano told ESPN. “Each player is different. Some guys are not built to two-gap in a 3-4 system.”

So Pagano moves them around, much like his mentor Wade Phillips did when Phillips coordinated the Chargers defense from 2004-06. And because of the proliferation of passing offenses, the Bolts ran sub-package sets nearly 70 percent of the time.

San Diego isn't the only team that's multiple in its fronts. Several of Pete Carroll's disciples with the Seattle Seahawks have installed Carroll's "over" defense, which features a pass-rushing end (or "Leo") who can stand up and rush the passer or drop back in coverage.

The end goal of any formation? To get an offense on its heels before the snap even goes off.

“You’re trying to make the offense one-dimensional,” Pagano said. “Whether that one dimension is they’re going to throw it or run it, they’re going to be one-dimensional. And that’s why in your sub packages you have to be able to play the run and do those things better.”

(h/t ESPN)