The Essential Smart Football

by Chris B. Brown

The Essential Smart Football is an examination of football's most important strategies and ideas, through the lens of the game's best coaches, players, and schemes. Brilliantly written and eschewing unnecessary jargon and technicality, it makes a major contribution to our understanding of football to help all of us -- coaches, players, and fans -- appreciate the game we love all the more.

The Essential Smart Football features analysis of football's top strategists and their schemes, including:

- Urban Meyer's spread offense
- Tom Brady's no-huddle attack
- Bill Belichick's hybrid defense
- Mike Leach's pass-happy "Air Raid" offense
- The most popular scheme for running the ball in the NFL
- Nick Saban's school of defense

The book also includes explorations of modern approaches to the West Coast Offense, evolutions in defensive fronts and coverages, the changing role of the running game in spread and pro-style offenses, and much more.

Genres: Sports, Football, Nonfiction, Essays

141 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2012

Reviews

[Joyce]

It took me so long to write up this review because I read the book three times in a row. Excellent and unique look at major innovations in football strategy within their historical context. You don't just learn what the Air Raid offense or a one-gap vs two-gap defense is all about. Brown explains briefly but completely what forces and people at a particular moment in time led to the development of those strategies.

Two factors really jumped out at me, as a newish football fan. One is how many innovations came from the college ranks (I went to the University of Chicago, so I find college football baffling and terrifying as an experience). If the accounts in this book are to be trusted, it seems that most fundamental strategic innovations are thought up by college coaches and technically refined to their most perfect form in the NFL. The second theme that emerges often is how much certain plans are built around the specific skillsets of star players such as Troy Polamalu, Tim Tebow, or Vince Wilfork.

I should note that I read this book on a Kindle, and I usually hesitate to buy books with a lot of charts on the Kindle because the formatting is usually awful. The author told me he had made a special effort to format the volume nicely for the e-book, and I can report he did his usual thorough job of it.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just trying to learn the rules!

[Nick Fahrney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty solid breakdown of the concepts, but would do better as a book with some more connective tissue

[Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you read his blog, you've seen some of this content. It's good content though and you will be a smarter fan for reading this. Catch up here and then put the blog in your RSS, you won't regret it.

[Mike Cheng · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a series of essays written between approximately 2008 - 2012, intended to provide a fun examination of the sport and its ideas, theories, and evolution. The lion’s share of the essays open with narratives about specific college and NFL coaches and what they’ve contributed to the game. Imo, this was a bit too verbose and many of the concepts were obscurely described or too arcane for the casual fan. However, two concepts were explained rather well.
The 1st is Urban Meyer’s Spread Offense:
If the defense (D) plays with two safeties (S) back - so long as the offense forces the D to cover its receivers (WRs) by employing constraint plays like bubble screens - the offense has a numbers advantage up front to run the ball. An athletic quarterback (QB) who can run creates the disparity.
If there is only one deep S then having a WR who can beat the corner (CB) will be integral. Against soft coverage the offense will throw underneath. Against tight coverage the offense will thrive on quick outside throws to the flats or deep balls.
If there is no deep S (i.e., Cover 0), then perpetually exploit the WR / CB mismatch.
The 2nd is about Cover 1, and its derivative Cover 1 Robber (often employed by Nick Saban):
Basic Cover 1 is with one deep (S) in the middle of the field with the rest of the WRs covered man-to-man. This deep S has to be a great center fielder who can both stop the deep ball as well as cover sideline to sideline. This type of coverage allows the D to put Eight-in-the-box, pressuring the QB and stopping the run game. When the offense has to throw (e.g., on third down and long), the D can creatively blitz while still locking up the WRs.
Cover 1 Robber is similar, except that there are only four rushers while another defender (most often the middle linebacker (the Mike) sits at an intermediate level and reads the QB’s eyes to “rob” any pass routes over the middle. This variation is useful against the Spread Offense discussed above because the Mike can also spy QBs who like to run.
Author Chris Brown is a lawyer by trade, and believes that both coaching and law school don’t necessarily teach the game or the law, but instead how to problem solve.

[Tom Stamper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This relatively short book focuses mostly on defensive play schemes. Brown uses examples of teams and players around the year 2010, but also incorporates the history of defensive formations and the evolution of the game. There is also a little here on offensive schemes using Steve Spurrier as an example or the way Belichick used TEs Gronkowski and Hernandez on the field together. It’s the kind of book that will benefit you a great deal if you attend games in person and can watch the whole field. Because television focuses on the ball you don’t always see some of the great plays that happen away from it, unless a producer runs a replay.

A lot of my football knowledge has been limited to what I see on TV or the value players have in fantasy leagues. This is a good explanation of things I’ve heard or read elsewhere, but more accessible to the average fan. His chart drawings also help you get a visual where players line up and move during a play.

Examples used for study are the 1985 Bears 62 defense that went 15-1 and won the Superbowl, Jimmy Johnson using the 4-3 defense used to counter the wishbone offense in college and the NFL, Cover 1, Tampa 2, and such. I can see going back to it during the season and re-reading sections.

[Samuel Trupiano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris B. Brown put together a book covering the history of football, the evolution of offensive and defensive strategies in the NFL and CFB, and an painfully detailed account of where coaches came from and where they coach at. Aside from watching a few football games around the holidays or teams of schools I attend, my football knowledge is sparse; however, after reading this book I have come to appreciate the intricacies of the sport to a far greater extent. Chris illustrates just how quickly snap judgements are made by wide receivers, quarterbacks, running backs, corners, tight ends, and every other position. From setting up in press coverage to running spread offenses versus west coast offenses, this book gave me way more than I asked for. If I truly want to learn more about football, I think I’ll have to do some heavy YouTubing to learn the terminology better, then re-read the book… dead serious. For being under $3, this book is definitely a steal!

[Flávio Sousa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Essential Smart Football is a classic in the football strategy genre, offering deep insights into scheming and positioning, adorned with historical context. However, the book's complexity level ranges from intermediate to advanced intermediate, making it best suited for readers who already have a solid foundation in football strategy.

There is a lot of "air whiteboarding" throughout, so unless you are extremely familiar with formations like the I-Formation, Shotgun, and Pistol, or defensive schemes like the 4-3, Cover 2, and Nickel, you may find the reading experience challenging.

For those serious about understanding football beyond the surface, Essential Smart Football is an essential read that adds depth to your appreciation of the game.

[Jose Miguel Guerrero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with a compilations of articles that explain the basics about football and revolutionary ideas. From the spread to the 2 gap defense, Brown creates a type of football syllabus. Loved this reading because it uses real life examples that make you want to learn more plus understand the real world.

[Joe Stevens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally solid but dated football knowledge for the more dedicated fan. This was probably a five star book a decade ago, but now it does have the feel of reading analysis of headlines from 2010. Still if you can overcome this limitation there is plenty of insight into formations and technics that can add to your enjoyment of football.

[Paul Gomez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative

Very informative on how to follow the game currently and historically. Easy read with good explanations. I would recommend it to anybody who wants to get a better understanding of the game.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really fun collection of articles on the development of football strategy and tactics over the years. I've always been a fan of Chris Brown's blog and find his writing to be some of the most comprehensive and effective on the subject.

[Matt Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid if not random introduction to some light football history and mid-level concepts that can help to elevate anyone's knowledge of the game. Definitely dated but still a nice nugget and quick read for interested readers.

[Dan Bogosian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative but also more like a history book for those who don't know anything about football. If you read analysis from football over the past 20 years, most of this is like "yes, I remember this, I know."

[Alvaro Gallardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read

The book is easy to read and is an ode to football as it takes a few of the aspects and goes in depth in those aspects. A collection of long forms but very good long forms at that.

[Ryan Hathaway · Rating 5 out of 5]

All Short Form but perfect bite size nuggets. Good mix of depth without getting bog down. Clear explanations of the schemes discussed.

[璟農 劉 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Not a long book. But the short stories explain football concepts clearly. Great for reading on a bus or train

[Book]

Excellent

[Mathieu · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting overview of football schemes and concepts but a little advanced for a beta such as myself

[Paul Soto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

Interesting assessment of football xs and os. I am trying to learn more about the game and this was very helpful

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is guaranteed to make you a smarter football fan

[Aaron Clement · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realize this is just a compilation of blog posts about football. There's a lot of good info, but the chapters aren't connected to one another. It's okay for what it is.

[Zach Koenig · Rating 3 out of 5]

I chose to read "The Essential Smart Football" by Chris Brown because I very much enjoy baseball strategy/analysis books and thought "why not read one pertaining to football as well?". I have to say that I was a bit disappointed in this one, if only because it lacked any sort of structure.

Basically, this is a collection of short articles about specific football tactics (some offense, some defense, some based on players, some based on coaches, etc.). There are 18 articles in all and, while most of them are at least somewhat interesting, they are so "all over the map" that it is tough to go from one to the next.

Perhaps it is my fault for not "reading the directions" carefully enough (as I somewhat knew this was an essay collection going in), but I guess I was expecting something with a bit more structure. I mean, some of these "articles" are only a couple of pages long! There is nothing here even as remotely interesting as previous baseball analysis books I have read (although maybe baseball just lends itself better to such readings than does football).

Overall, I though "The Essential Smart Football" was "just okay". I did learn a little from it, but its theories and essays were so scattered across the board that it introduced too many new ideas in such a short space (only 141 pages).

[Oliver Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two things need to be said about this short but compelling volume:

1) Chris Brown deserves to be commended for self-publishing this book. It's his writing, he has a preexisting audience, and there's no need for him to waste time with publishers, rewrites, etc. He's also selling it for mere "coffee money," which is justifiable given how brief it is.

2) The write-ups in here are top-notch, as regular readers of Smart Football would expect. The opening essay, on Charlie Strong's 3-3-5 defense (which is available to read for free on Grantland), is tremendous; it's bookended by the even better "Ode to the War Daddies," a historical piece on 2-gap and 1-gap defensive techniques (also available in slightly different format on Grantland). Brown is to football what Grantland/Basketball Prospectus writer Sebastian Priuti and SI "The Point Forward" blogger Zach Lowe are to basketball: a brilliant analyst who painstakingly explains the inner workings of his favorite sport to readers. Such is not the case with the old Tom Verducci school of writers, who trade in clichés and anecdotes while leaving regular readers completely unaware of how the games they care about are actually played.

The best sportswriting is now found almost exclusively on the Internet (SI, ESPN The Mag, and the like are composed primarily of puff pieces and silly "Darius Miles is the New Jordan" hype-fests, with the occasional George Dohrmann UCLA exposé mixed in to keep things semi-relevant), and Chris Brown (who hasn't quit his day job) is one of its foremost practitioners. Support his good work by purchasing this extremely cheap book.

[David Klotz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came to SmartFootball.com somewhat late to the game, but have been an avid reader since. When I found out that Chris Brown was putting putting out a book of "best of" combined with new material, I was very excited to see the result. I have not been disappointed.

The book will be especially enjoyable to those who are unfamiliar with or new to the site. I had read only two of the older articles, but even there I found new insights after re-reading them. I suspect that even if you are familiar with all of the older content, the book is still going to be a must have based on the new content alone.

My only minor complaint is that I wish some of the articles had been longer, and the older ones expanded on further. Several times I felt like I was getting into the meat of the essay only to find it ending on the next page. Despite that, I would consider this to be required reading for anyone interested in a deeper understanding of the strategy of football, at any level.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the sport of football for the same reason Chris B. Brown does: it’s near perfect blend of athleticism and strategy. As he puts it, football is the “rare pastime that has the potential to stimulate our left and right brains equally.” The result is a beautiful game.

This book is a compilation of essays Brown posted on his website smartfootball.com. It’s not for the casual fan. He goes fairly in-depth over coaching strategies, techniques like the five versus seven step drop, and tactics for offensive and defensive line play that to a casual fan would sound as if he’s writing in a foreign language. In addition, because these essays are essentially pieces lifted from his blog over time, they lack any particular coherence or unifying theme. But for those of us who love the sport, learning more about what is actually happening on the field is like an art lover studying art history. It gives you that much more of an appreciation of the masterpieces you love.

[Kasey · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you care about football (gridiron) and you aren't reading Chris Brown's Smart Football blog, you are missing out. He consistently is one of the best bloggers on the subject. He gets deep with play calling and game theory. His explanations of what are happening on plays (with video annotations) make you a better fan.

This is a collection of previously published work, some of it reworked a bit. I don't know that there was much here that I hadn't read, but it was all useful to go back through and review. If you haven't been a regular reader of his blog, this is the perfect place to start.

This is a self published title so the production quality is not superb. That said, it doesn't detract from the content and does a fine job delivering the knowledge.

One of the best books on football I've read.

[Jack Friedland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a joy to read for me because it is just football football football. It talks about big name coaches and players, and how they changed and shaped the game on all levels. It also teaches things like how to read defenses and how to interpret the game. One reason I liked it was because it teaches a lot about the history of football. It includes stuff like where certain parts of the game came from or which coach created which plays that were very successful. Another reason I liked it was because this book has language only a football player could understand. After a while I would take a close look at the text and think "this would sound like nonsense to a regular person." I don't know why but I really liked that.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a great encapsulation of the current popular schematics of football play calling. The book does a good job explaining why certain coaches, from professional to college, are enjoying success based on their unique style of football.
It would help to have a basic understanding of football since this is not an introduction yet an analysis of contemporary football.
My basic understanding of the game has been changed for the better as well as my perspective of the game. To be able to notice the intricate play calling and determine a coaches game plan leads to a more than satisfying game watching experience.
This book notes how the game has changed over the years and it will be interesting to compare this book to the style of football play several years from now.

[Geoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

My relationship with football is increasingly complicated. I'm becoming increasingly convinced that being a fan is to contribute unethically to the destruction of human minds and bodies. I rarely watch a game on tv, since the stops & way too frequent commercials are boring. But I've become more and more fascinated my the tactics and strategy of the game, how different schemes succeed in solving problems, & how a play acctually works (analysis which is often missing from the qb-obsessed analysis on tv). Does this make me a hypocrite? Maybe. But either way, this was a great book, pitched at the non-novice (whuch meant it was over my head a good amount), that shows (like millitary history) just how much thought and effort goes into preparing to destroy other humans.