Through exclusive interviews with Jeff Ulbrich and the Falcons players who embody his message, AtlantaFalcons.com breaks down the foundation of the Heart-Mind-Fist philosophy, which was forged during Ulbrich's 25 years in the NFL.

Born of a player's experience. Driven by a coach's purpose.

This is the second pillar, Mind.

"Heart, which is your strain, your finish; how you demonstrate your connection to your brother. You have full control of that, regardless of the result," Ulbrich said. "Mind — the execution. You might get beat, but did you execute correctly? Then Fist — did you bring that mindset to be physical and violent every play? We control those three things. That doesn't necessarily mean the outcome is going to be great, but we're going to rep our style every single time we cross that white line because we have full control of those three things."

To the eye, Ulbrich's defense will not appear overly complex. There is a level of modern multiplicity he believes is necessary in today's game, but Ulbrich does not rely on a high volume of exotic blitzes or coverage packages. Instead, he prefers a smaller menu and places the emphasis on execution.

The decade Ulbrich spent playing linebacker in the NFL informs his belief that a clear mind helps his defense play fast and confidently. Clearing a mind is not achieved by decluttering a call sheet, however. If only it were so simple.

This style of defense is brought to life by the players who comprise it more than the plays called. Therefore, Ulbrich and his staff give as much consideration to how they are teaching as they do what they are teaching.

Careful attention is paid to each player's specific learning style so the staff can deliver each lesson in ways that help them retain it.

"Is he a kinesthetic learner? Does he struggle with film? Does he struggle with sitting in meeting rooms too long? Does he thrive on a board? Does he need walkthroughs? Does he need whatever it is? So, before we even touch them," Ulbrich said, "assess the learner.

"Go talk to their position coaches, talk to their coordinators, talk to their head coach, talk to their learning specialist at their school, talk to their tutors. 'How do we connect to this guy? How do we present information in a way that's a way that he'll absorb it and be able to function at a high level?'"

Those questions have led Ulbrich to experiment with different methods in an attempt to find that connection. Each new class of players presents a unique challenge, meaning adaptability is a useful skill for today's coaches.

One current obstacle is the proliferation of smart phones, which Ulbrich called "an appendage" for this generation. Instead of bemoaning the access to constant distractions and their impact on attention spans, however, Atlanta's defensive coordinator took a creative approach.

"They learn in tweets. They learn in short, little quotes," Ulbrich said. "So, we have to adapt, and we have to present information in that same way."

To better mimic the bite-sized learning and rapid task-switching for players, Ulbrich has set 90-second timers in his defensive meetings before. The idea being that after every 90 seconds the instructional format changes.

Ulbrich is at the board diagramming the play design.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Film clicks on to demonstrate the way something should look.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Players stand up and go through the motions of the play.

"I think some coaches think (walk-throughs are) a test of the players," Ulbrich said. "To me, it's more of a test of the coaches. Did I present the information in the right way? If they're messing up, that's my fault. There's too many coaches that are like, 'I got dumb players.' You've got dumb coaches that are unwilling to adapt to the new-age learner."

Responsibility isn't entirely on the staff, however. The players also own a large share of accountability for their own education.

Ulbrich makes sure each film cut-up his unit watches is tagged with a voice-over that provides a mini lesson and additional context a defender might need. This turns defensive meetings from lectures to conversations, where players are actively engaged and bringing questions to the coaching staff. The buy-in begins before the meeting starts.

"I think the teaching is a little bit different with Brich," Falcons safety Jessie Bates III said of his defensive coordinator." And just his presence, man. That's one thing I've been really impressed with, is the person that he is and the way that he's explaining our style of play."

The enhanced communication during meetings serves to reinforce the trust between players and coaches, which is then cemented on the practice field. A more refined playbook allows for more time spent practicing each page. Through this constant repetition, mastery is gained.

It's this process that unburdens a player's mind.

"Ultimately, the goal is unconscious competence — where we are just reacting and playing — because the best defenses do that," Ulbrich said. "The only way I can get there is if I can put these guys on repeat and not give them too much. … They know it; it's in their DNA. They just do it, and they just react, and they play at a high level."

Ulbrich's process for instruction is aimed at creating muscle memory so deep that the brain is unable to interfere. Free from the mental taxation of thinking through each call and subsequent responsibility, a player's natural instincts become louder.

Like an actor who knows her lines so well she can be fully immersed in the emotional authenticity of the scene as it unfolds, so too should a player have such a command of his assignments.

"When you're able to go up there and we're all watching the same tape and making sure that we see the same things and we're making the same calls, I think that kind of breeds confidence," Bates said. "And usually communication breeds confidence. It makes you feel comfortable."

Early in training camp, one Falcons defender stood out to Ulbrich in this way. Fresh off a true breakout season, Kaden Elliss' presence on the field caught the attention of his new defensive coordinator. He knew about the linebacker's versatility, which would be key in his multiple approach, but Elliss' processing speed was a pleasant surprise.

"You're very careful about the level of detail and the amount of nuance that you give someone because, at times, it slows players down," Ulbrich said. "And I would say it slows more players down than it doesn't. He is the exact opposite. I think the more information you give him, the better he gets.

"We had this little coaching point about striking a match on this motion that we were doing today and mid play, he's screaming out the coaching point. He has this amazing ability to apply the information in real time."

Each player's instincts add a new flavor to the defense. While some coaches prefer to pull all of the strings on game day, others lean into their group's unique abilities and help blend that into their approach.

Because of his time spent in their cleats, Ulbrich understands that there are spontaneous moments that may arise where a player senses the opportunity to make a play. He wants to allow for that kind of intuition; he's seen how it can change games.

"The great ones, I always call it, they kind of live in the gray," Ulbrich said. "The black and white is the rules, the alignment, the assignment, the fundamentals, the PowerPoint, the playbook. And then there's this gray side of the game where the special ones understand when to venture into that gray. Because there's greatness in the gray."

Encouraging his players to study and know their opponent promotes those instinctual choices because preparation can lead to recognition on game day. While Ulbrich does not appreciate freelancing, which he says is different from a well-informed guess, and cautions defenders about not playing too much in that gray space because it can get "funky," he knows that can be a natural byproduct of asking them to fully understand their opponent.

Ulbrich played for Hall of Fame linebacker Mike Singletary — first as his position coach and then as the San Francisco 49ers' head coach. One of the best to ever play the game, Singletary also had direct knowledge of the chaos that takes place on an NFL field.

In one such moment, Ulbrich made a decision based on the advanced scouting he'd done for the game. It didn't work, but the resulting conversation is one that has stuck with him.

"Mike was such a robot the way he coached me sometimes," Ulbrich said. "It was like this great indicator one game, and of course I took my shot and it was wrong — whatever. And then Mike yelled at me in the meeting room.

"I'm like, 'Mike, you always preach to watch tape and to gather information. Well, you're full of crap — you know what I'm saying?' 'What, son?' 'Yeah, you're full of crap, Mike. You hear what I said?' 'Son, you got to cross the river.' He told me that like 50 times. I'm like, 'I don't know what the river is.'"

Now in the role of coach, Ulbrich strives to give his players clarity. But it's not about getting all 11 defenders on the field to think like him. Ulbrich's philosophy is about empowering players with information and instruction to make the best choice possible, and then trusting them to do just that.

Investing in a player's mind at the earliest possible moments, whether in 90-second bursts or through detailed voice-overs, pays dividends on game day. The goal, however, isn't about thinking through every bit of execution — the game is too fast for that. It's about making the execution automatic and quieting the mind.

Once the noise dies down, the defensive style shines through.