Trend to watch: MUG defensive fronts on 3rd down
Prepare for Week 17 by learning about one of the NFL's most popular 3rd down defenses
As NFL offenses continue to add more wrinkles and ways to disguise their play-calls, defenses have had to adapt and adjust to keep up. One of the increasingly more common ways defenses have attempted to keep offenses on their toes is through the MUG defensive front.
The MUG defensive front is when 6, 7 or at times even 8 players line up at the line of scrimmage in what viewers might think is an all-out blitz. And at times it is just that — an all-out blitz. Other times, anywhere from 1 to 3 of the defenders threatening at the line of scrimmage will drop back into pass coverage. The MUG front is almost exclusively used on third and fourth down to disguise where pressure is coming from and force opposing quarterbacks to get the ball out quickly.
Let’s look at two examples of the MUG front from the Colts and Chiefs last Sunday.
Indianapolis Colts Mug Fronts
On the first 3rd down of the game, the Colts put 7 defenders on the line of scrimmage, overloading the left side with 4 defenders. The Colts are baiting the Cardinals into adjusting their protection and possibly their play call. With only 5 offensive lineman and 7 threatening defensive players, the Cardinals must keep their HB Chase Edmonds in the backfield to block and QB Kyler Murray has no choice but to get the ball out quickly.
On the snap, two Colts defenders at the LOS drop back into coverage and a Colts defensive back comes on a blitz. This causes some confusion for the Cardinals offensive line as they block two Colts defenders with 3 lineman on the left side and let Colts’ safety Jahleel Addae off the line untouched. Cardinals’ Pro Bowl QB Kyler Murray does a great job of beating the MUG front by quickly getting the ball out to his TE Zach Ertz for the first down.
Now let’s jump ahead to a 3rd down late in the second quarter with the Cardinals backed up in their own territory.
The Colts give the Cardinals an identical look, 7 defenders at the LOS, one side overloaded and the defensive backs aligned exactly as they were in the first quarter.
This time at the snap, all 7 defenders at the LOS remain there with 6 going after Murray and linebacker Bobby Okereke occupying the center and spying Murray. The Cardinals again have difficulties attempting to block the oncoming onslaught by the Colts, with linebacker Skain Moore going untouched in the A gap and Addae again going unblocked off the edge. Of course, all of this is exacerbated by the bad snap, which leads to the intentional grounding in the end zone by Murray for a safety.
Kansas City Chiefs MUG fronts
Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is known for his aggressive play-calling, specifically sending house blitzes on third down.
Here in the second quarter the Steelers have a third down and the Chiefs show six at the line of scrimmage. For their first MUG front of the day, Kansas City isn’t disguising anything as all 6 defenders attack at the snap. The Steelers respond with a wide receiver screen, but don’t gain enough for the first and settle for a field goal.
Fast forward to midway the 3rd quarter. The Chiefs again show a MUG front on 3rd down with 6 players threatening at the LOS. This time Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen drops into man coverage on the tight end and the Chiefs run a man defense with two safeties over the top. KC’s defensive line collapses on Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, but he gets off a wobbly throw and Chiefs corner L’Jarius Sneed gets caught grabbing Steelers receiver Chase Claypool, giving the Steelers their first 3rd down conversion of the day.
The MUG front has become one of the favorite 3rd down schemes by defensive coordinators across the league. By utilizing 6-8 defenders to threaten the quarterback, it limits the offense to almost solely being able to call quick passes. In addition, with the ability of defensive backs and more athletic linebackers to threaten the blitz and then quickly drop into passing lanes — quarterbacks have to be extra cautious. The MUG front is no longer brand new, and offenses have adopted by having specific sets of plays to combat the MUG front. These counters usually include quick routes from inside receivers and fades from outside receivers to beat tight man coverage.
In a league where offenses have become creative and exotic, the MUG defensive front is one of the many counters that teams are using to try to level the playing field.