The Wide-9 Defensive Front

The Wide-9 puts the defensive ends outside the TE's outside foot — a 9-technique alignment. The angle gives the edge rushers clear runway to the QB and forces offensive tackles to cover ground and width simultaneously.

Jim Schwartz popularized it with the Lions in the late 2000s. The Eagles ran it under Jim Schwartz from 2016-2020. Today most NFL teams have a wide-9 package on passing downs, even if they don't live in it.

The strength is pass rush. With edge defenders aligned wide, they have a clear track to the QB without having to navigate inside blockers. Pair with a 1-tech and a 3-tech in the interior, and you have four pass rushers attacking four offensive linemen with clean angles.

The weakness is the run game. Wide-9 ends are far from the LOS and often outside the C-gap. Inside zone and power runs gash the wide-9 because the run support is now coming from a linebacker who has to fit through traffic.

The answer is a hybrid front. Wide-9 on passing downs, 5-tech on running downs. Modern defenses live in sub packages and rotate fronts based on the offense's tendency, so the wide-9 isn't the all-snap defense it was in 2010.