The Opening Drive 10/22: Fire Zones and Sim Pressures

Jim Schwartz' defense had the Dolphins struggling to know who was blitzing and how coverage behind it was moving.

Oct 22, 2025

In the midst of finishing the defense review it struck me how much different this plan of attack was for the Browns than their usual approach. Instead of their dense man coverages that rely on just front-four pressure to solve every pass rush necessity, they leaned into zone coverages with a variety of secondary looks to mess with the quarterback’s pre-to-post snap plan. Of Tua Tagovailoa’s 28 dropbacks, 14 of them included a Browns blitz of some variety. The plan clearly worked.

Kevin Stefanski talked about giving Jim Schwartz a game ball for his efforts in breaking tendencies and having the Dolphins off balance. “Well, the entire defense got a game ball, but I just wanted to point out, Jim, I thought it was a really smart plan and obviously very well executed.”

So, even though we posted the full defense film room yesterday, I wanted to spend more time on these schemes and show you the calculated risks they took in this game and how those risks led to key second half turnovers.

Before we do that, below you’ll find the latest in the BFB catalog for supporters to dig into. Click the link to become a supporter if you haven’t already, and enjoy all the latest from Browns Film Breakdown.

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It has been rare for the Browns to do many blitzes this year that leave them vulnerable in that back half but they did just that on Sunday. They used a variety of three deep, three under concepts and this one here is the first one that impacted on a key 3rd down. Schwartz brought the boundary cornerback on a “rat” blitz from a mug front (linebackers walked up into the A-Gaps). This pre-snap look gets the quarterback concerned about middle pressure but also bringing the cornerback means immediate pressure off the edge.

Roll the safety over the replace the blitzing corner, drop the MIKE linebacker and backside EDGE to play low coverage and you have a nice wrinkle. Tagovailoa tries to get this ball out in a hurry but it lands inaccurately due to pressure and the coverage rolling.

Now we get to the even more risky look. The Browns used a six-down front several times in this game to handle the run looks in a wet environment, but then they used it during passing downs to bring six rushers. That means zone coverage behind it is quite vulnerable with only five pass defenders. They used three-deep and two-under looks multiple times in this game.

The biggest winning outcome on the day using this one was the Tyson Campbell interception returned for a touchdown. Tagovailoa knows he has to throw quick so he throws the speed out to No. 2, and that is when Rayshawn Jenkins closes quickly due to the fast quarterback choice and hit the receiver as the ball arrives springing the ball into the air to create the turnover. Again, pressure on quick decisions.

But, be warned, this is a risky pressure, and the Browns learned that in the first half. If your six-man pressure doesn’t get home then only having the three-deep and two-under look can leave you in a bad spot covering routes. The longer the quarterback can process, the tougher the situation with spot drop coverage like this. Have to get pressure home quick.

The final fun pressure of the day was this fire zone where the Browns made it look like pressure was coming to the quarterback’s left side as the MIKE and Nickel creeped toward the line-of-scrimmage then only to bring the overload to the right side. This is how you manipulate protection slides and get a free blitzer running at the quarterback.

The Dolphins slide left for the perceived pressure, but then the MIKE and left side DT drop into zone while Grant Delpit rushes off the right side untouched. This confuses Tagovailoa and forces his eyes into the wrong spot. Once he realizes the issue, he panic throws into the void he thinks is there for the deep over route but Jenkins roll down into the hook zone is just waiting on the ball. Easy interception.

While none of us want the Browns to bail on their aggressive man coverage style, throwing in wrinkles like these and making quarterbacks think through the game is a welcome change. These were well-run blitzes and paired with solid zone coverage. If the Browns are running more of these the rest of the way, it could bring some fun results. The Patriots will have to prepare accordingly for them this week.