The key thing to remember is that the corners are a part of your defense.
Now, that may sound simplistic or even too simple. "Hey Roo, everyone knows that!"
No, they don't.
I have played a few folks in the recent past and many have asked me the same question ...
"Where did he come from?"
The he of which the coach is speaking is my cornerback. Season after season, my cornerbacks lead my team in sacks and tackles for loss. Simple clutching and grabbing the receiver isn't enough. If you want to play that, it's cool, and if you have the right figure, it should work. But if the WR has the right base, it won't.
What I've found is that on the corner, you want a base that more than just grabbing, will also guide. Guiding is the key. My corners aren't going to hold your receiver for more than a couple seconds. But I can line them up in such a way (using the dials to hide the scheme) where those corners will grab the receiver, and continue on their programmed route (EF god willing).
What results is the WR in the backfield, in effect turned from a receiving target to a pass-blocker. And if he blocks the corner out from getting pressure - that's fine! Because he also isn't catching the pass, either.
When this attack is successful, however, what will happen is the receiver will get free from the corner, only to be running parallel to the LOS or behind it, and behind the quarterback, such that he is no longer a legit passing target. In some cases, the cornerback then speeds in and make the sack. In others, he forces the coach to stop the board, minus at least one of his receiving targets because he's been taken out of the play by his own blocking.
Now - that said. ... To run this you need effective safeties, and I'm still struggling with this. Because at times, your corner will get beat early, and the receiver will roam into the secondary and be open even if your corner applies some pressure. I typically won't cover the boundaries with safeties (set to spin). They will cover the middle and the areas between the hashes and the numbers. What I need here are speedier TTCs that run a bit straighter, so if any of the base tweakers wanna talk ...
It ain't a perfect system. There is no perfect system. And I can't use it all the time. Boat bases are a chore because they may well beat my corners off the break. And I will try and run with receivers at times, especially if I know the opposing coach not to be good with the TTQB, and therefore he needs to use the "chopsticks." In that case, I couldn't care less about manning up on a receiver - I just want someone in all the open areas to get the interception.
As Lomax eluded to, though, if you run off receivers, you have to have someone that can fill that gap to stop the outside runs. If your OLBs can't get to the boundary quicker than the offensive's tailback? Good night.
Another trick is let the tight end run a bit. Everyone mans up on the tight end! Why? If you see that your opponent's TE runs straight, play 5 yards off him with a good TTC and then man him up. This does 3 things:
1) You can blitz a fast looper or fast straight runner (angled) in on the quarterback from the spot the TE is vacating.
b) You aren't picking the TE up until later in the play and as such, only need to cover him for a shorter period of time (unless you miss your blitz and the QB has all day - but if that's the case, you got other things to worry about)
iii) The coach may see you off the TE and expect him to be open, thus forgetting about the receiver that was to be his main option on the play. He stops the board, expecting to throw to his TE, but he's locked up at the last minute by your defender and he has to look elsewhere, which may not be open.
Ed