The Nickel 1-5-5 is one of the most unqiue defensive formations offered in Madden. The reason this defense is so unusual is because there is only one defender that lines up on the line of scrimmage. The remaining defenders consist of five linebackers and five defense backs. This formation can provide a lot of flexibility in the passing game because you can move players all over the field. Today, SportsGamer is going to break down a blitz that we like to use called the Cover 2 Sink. The reason we want to look at this play is because it has one of most consistent blitzing angles provided in the game. There are many other plays within the 1-5-5 formation that have the same blitzing angle, so the setup that we are about to show you will work for those plays as well. Check it out!
Nickel 1-5-5 - Cover 2 Sink
Quick Setup
Step 1 of 1 - Shift the defensive line to the right (XBOX - White button + right / PS2 - L1 + right)
Step 2 of 2 - Crash the defensive line down (Right analog stick + down).
Step 3 of 3 - Playmaker both right outside linebackers down and manually move them in front of the left tackle and left guard.
Step 4 of 4 - Playmaker the left outside linebacker to blitz.
Play Breakdown
Figure 1 - The New England Patriots have come out in the Cover 2 Sink. Currently, this play has two deep safeties, five defenders playing hook zones (yellow zones), and four defenders rushing after the quarterback. We would suggest manually controlling the deep safety (playing a hook zone) in the middle of the field to roam around with during the play. Watch as we begin making the neccessary changes on the field in Figure 2.
Figure 2 - We've used the four Quick Setup steps in this image and we're ready to begin the play. The pressure on this play is designed to come from the middle linebacker through the A-gap to the left of the center. The only change that we made on the field to the coverages is playmakering the right outside linebacker's hook zone to a blitz.
Figure 3 - The close-up on the line of scrimmage allows you to see what the Jacksonville Jaguars' offense is looking at before the snap. It is important to know that we would only suggest using this formation on passing downs because it is vulnerable to the run. There are a number of players who like to use this formation throughout an entire game, but these players are skilled enough to slow down almost anything that their opponent throws at them. Let's begin the play.
Figure 4 - As Jaguars' quarterback Byron Leftwich drops back to pass we can see the offensive line beginning to breakdown. Center Brad Meester slides to his right to pick up defensive tackle Vince Wilfork. Meanwhile, we have three Patriot linebackers attacking the left side of the offensive line.
Figure 5 - Left tackle Khalif Barnes prepares to make the one on one block on right outside linebacker Rosevelt Colvin. However, left guard Vince Manuwai has two linebackers headed in his direction.
Figure 6 - Manuwai locks down on the linebacker Freddie Roach because he was the closest defender. Middle linebacker Mike Vrabel takes advantage of the opening as he shoots through our opponent's line. The blocking doesn't always develop in this exact fashion. However, the idea is that we've created an overload on the left side, so you can expect someone to come free every time if they don't keep an extra player back to block.
Figure 7 - Vrabel continues his pursuit as Leftwich is quickly running out of time in the pocket.
Figure 8 - Vrabl closes in for the sack as the coverage holds downfield.
Figure 9 - Leftwich is driven into the ground for a big loss on the play.
Nickel 1-5-5 - Over Storm Brave
We want to take a look at another play that shows your opponent the same look on the field, but brings something completely different after the snap. The play that we're going to breakdown next is the Nickel 1-5-5 Over Storm Brave.
Figure 10 - This defense is a bit more risky because there is no help over the top. Fortunately, your opponent will probably be looking to dump the ball off quickly once he sees the pressure.
Figure 11 - We've taken all of the exact same Quick Setup steps shown above. However, the real key on this play is the fact that our defensive tackle's (Wilfork) rushing angle is very hard to the right after the snap. This unique angle from the defensive tackle is what allows us to bring the pressure from a different spot this time.
Figure 12 - This image provides you with one more close look at the line of scrimmage. Our opponent is expecting pressure up the middle, or to his left. Fortunately, this time we're bring heat off the right side of the offensive line.
Figure 13 - Immediately after the snap, defensive tackle Vince Wilfork makes his break to the right.
Figure 14 - Wilfork and linebacker Tedy Bruschi take on the blocks from the left guard and left tackle. Meanwhile, Tully Banta-Cain continues racing around the outside for a free shot at Leftwich.
Figure 15 - Banta-Cain prepares to deliver the big hit on Leftwich.
Figure 16 - Leftwich gets smashed again, but this time from the right side of the line. Now our opponent has no idea where the pressure is going to come from on the next play.
Final Thoughts
The Nickel 1-5-5 can be one of the most fun formations to run once you really have it working well. The only real weakness to this defense is being able to stop the run. If you really like what SportsGamer showed in this tip, then we would suggest finding different ways to shoot gaps on running plays to make this defense complete. It is possible to stop the run from this formation because we've seen it done consistently. However, it takes time and practice to get the kind of results we're talking about against a good running game. Take these two plays onto the practice field to see what kind of results they can yield for your defense.
