Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown has evolved over the years to become the coordinator he is now, and he’s not one to mince words.He doesn’t just talk about playing with aggression — he backs it up every time one of his teams takes the field.
“It started around 2000 for me,” he told former U-M offensive lineman Jon Jansen during Jansen’s recent In The Trenches podcast. “Everybody has their own way of doing it. Some people have said it’s high risk, high reward. I don’t see it that way. There isn’t a pressure that’s not run at last 50 or 100 times, either in spring or fall. We don’t just throw stuff against the wall.
“It is pressure based. We want the quarterback to feel us, the opportunity to dictate tempo. It’s really an evolving deal for us. We never stand pat; we’re always moving in terms of changing the scheme to some degree, but the basic elements are there and the basic traits are there, and that’s what it’s all about. You’ve got to stand for something.”
The 2018 defense has responded well to his teachings, he continued.
“This could be as good a group as I’ve ever been around,” he said. “I’m anxious every day when I go to work. There are certain snaps I stand behind and I’m watching, and our guys are executing at a high level. It’s fast. You know that. The key is getting everybody to function as one, at the same time getting everybody to execute.
“It’s nice to be aggressive, nice to talk about all those deals, but it’s even more important because instead of playing gaps, like some teams do — they’ll rush their four, play their gaps — we’re blitzing those gaps and then fitting the coverage in behind it in one of three to four different support systems. Obviously, there’s a lot of work that goes into getting those things right.”
The front seven and the starting corners are extremely talented. Brown, though, likes the developing depth in the secondary, as well.
“[Sophomore] Ambry [Thomas] has jumped into the mix at corner, this young [safety] Jaylen Kelly-Powell has some talent, and it’s starting to show through. I think he’s playing fast, and concept recognition, getting comfortable in his own skin,” he said. “Those two traits are translating to him playing the way we knew he could play.
“[Fifth-year senior corner] Brandon Watson, it is gratifying. We thought he played pretty solidly last fall, but he’s taken that game from wherever he was to another level, which is great. Lavert [Hill] and David [Long] just keep getting better and better. I’m really happy with the growth and development we have at safety.”
The same is true of his entire defense, he said.
“I’ve got a great bunch of young people I’m working with on a daily basis, great coaches I work with on a daily basis,” he said. “Life is good in Ann Arbor.
Receivers, Quarterbacks Stepping Up
Former Michigan All-American receiver Braylon Edwards has also sat in on some practices. He’s pleased with the progress in the passing game.
“What I see out of Brandon Peters as well as Dylan McCaffrey, I see they’ve taken steps to get better,” he said. “I don’t know if that’s because Shea Patterson is here and now Joe Milton, but the quarterback position is more efficient. Shea in there in drops, individual routes or drills, I see efficiency. I see Joe Milton who is a stud, but young.
“It’s headed in the right direction.”
The receivers have made strides, he added.
“I like the hire of Roy Roundtree and I like Coach [Jim] McElwain being there, because I’m seeing a little better route running, seeing fundamentals better, not rounding routes at the top of their break,” he said. “I see a better group than we saw last year. They’re a little older, more experienced. Nico Collins is a sleeper, and Grant Perry a leader on that side. I like what they can do this year.”
The secondary has tightened up, as well.
“They’ve gotten better in the coverage game,” Edwards said. “Last year there were some open spots, guys outside make some plays. This time they’re staying in their pocket, and I’m seeing real good hand placement at the line of scrimmage.”
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