Full disclosure: I have always been a defensive guy. My journey spans 18 seasons, from being a high school assistant freshman coach to a member of a professional staff. Like any good defensive coach, my relationship with the offense is a rocky one. I respect when an offense is played properly and efficiently both by my team and my opponents. However, I find myself fighting the urge to feel slighted by those who only want to see points scored. It is a rollercoaster of emotions.

In December 2018, I accepted a job with the Memphis Express in the Alliance of American Football League (AAF). While I would wear several hats, the one I was most excited about was working on a professional defensive staff. Led by defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman and linebacker coach Tom Mason, there was decades of NFL and NCAA coaching experience. Not to mention our head coach Mike Singletary was one of the greatest linebackers to ever play the game. I was thrilled to be able to learn from these accomplished coaches while getting to bring a comprehensive combination of technology and analytics into the fabric of everyday defensive coaching and game planning.

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Early in minicamp, my plans were altered. Offensive coordinator David Lee requested I join the offensive staff as the tight ends coach (although I would still perform my defensive duties behind the scenes). When we left for holiday break, I was presented with a lot of soul searching; excitement about a new challenge and terrified to get out of my comfort zone. The following are some things I learned over the course of our six-month season. Some good, some obvious, some uncomfortable, but all have impacted my future as a defensive coach.

Learn, learn, learn – As soon as I got the word I was moving to offense, I got a hold of the playbook. After a decade of running the same defensive system and terminology, I realized quickly I had a lot to learn. Not only is it another language, but it is a different way of looking at the same thing. For example, I have spent a career on defense setting strength to passing strength (most eligible receivers), but the offensive system I was asked to learn considered the tight end the strength. In addition, the names of the linebackers (Sam, Mike and Will) were important and changed depending on the front and the play. While studying this was necessary to give me a foundation, it was the exposure to film after practice and install meetings with the experienced coaches that got me the most comfortable.

They don’t run as much as you think – This is a concept that all coaches can learn from, on either side of the ball: do less. This is especially true on offense and it makes sense when you think about it. Defensive play calling has its challenges, but I can easily recall many times the players turned a bad call into the right one or achieved despite no call at all. This is not the case on offense, at least not as common. While an offense may have a giant playbook and a variety of concepts shown on film throughout the year, a relatively small percentage is put into a game plan from week-to-week. In Memphis, we carried a few automatic game plans (AGPs), but the rest was opponent specific. In some cases, we only ran plays one way. How many times have you been watching an offense and they only seem to run a play one way? It might be their plan.

Pass protection is king – Getting into the nitty gritty of pass protection is something that I have spent the last few seasons doing. In Memphis, offensive Line coach Steve Marshall was so detailed with front identification, assignments, sets and protecting against difficult matchups that my understanding of protection was taken to the next level. This should be required experience for all defensive play callers who want to know the pressure that hurts a protection or even breaks a protection.

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Get out of a bad play – What I liked the most about our offensive structure was the commitment to avoiding “bad plays.” This was simple math: if they have eight guys in the box, we cannot block that play. I always used the idea that the defense outnumbered the offense as a source of confidence, but they know they can’t block everyone and don’t try. As I am sure is common with most offenses, they have answers to these number issues. Changing the play or its direction at the line of scrimmage, adding an option element (RPO or zone read) and short motioning a receiver were ways to account for the guy we couldn’t block.

I truly enjoyed my season on offense and the challenges it presented me. Not only did I have to learn something new, but I also had to teach it. Coach Thurman shared a great life lesson with me. “Be yourself and teach them something.” I was honest and up front with the tight end room about my limited offensive experience but guaranteed them they would learn something. For example, at the end of each meeting during training camp we discussed the things defensively that I would do to our offense to cause them problems. Towards the end, I got more and more comfortable with the scheme and we all got better together.

All offenses may not be like the one I experienced, however there are defensive lessons to learn from the other side. Take advantage of the exposure you get to coaches on offense. Ask questions about rules, identification and protection as it may shine a light on your own defensive philosophies and make you a more complete coach.