Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Quick Slants out of Pistol Ace 12 personnel sends both outside receivers on hard inside slants that cross the middle of the field at a shallow depth, while the two remaining receivers (the slot options off the diagram) run outlet routes breaking to the sideline underneath the slants. This is a classic man beater built on rub and pick concepts, since the two slant routes converge and create natural traffic for defenders trying to trail in man coverage. The primary read progression starts with the near-side slant off the quick three-step drop, then works to the opposite slant if the first window is jumped, with the underneath outlet routes as the checkdown against a hard squeeze.
Defensive Reads
Watch linebacker depth at the snap: shallow, aggressive linebackers will jump the slant lanes and force you to hold the ball an extra beat, so know your checkdown before the snap. Identify Cover 3 or Cover 4 shells presnap by counting deep defenders, since zone drops with a hard curl-flat combo can squeeze the slant throwing lanes and bait a user pick. Key the flat defender on the play side, because if he sinks with the slant instead of covering the outlet route, that opens an easy completion to the shorter route breaking outside. Beware disguised Cover 1 or Cover 0 pressure with a lurking user linebacker sitting in the shallow middle, since that defender can undercut both slants if the quarterback stares down the first read too long. Man coverage with inside-shaded corners and no safety help over the top is the ideal matchup, while a sound Tampa 2 or Cover 4 shell with disciplined linebacker drops is the toughest look to attack with this concept.
Usage Tips
Fire this out of Pistol Ace 12 personnel on third and short or first and ten when you want a quick, low-risk completion that also has explosive potential if a corner bites on the flat route.
Presnap, identify man versus zone by watching corner alignment: tight press or shaded inside alignment usually means man, which is exactly what the slants are built to exploit.
Hot route the backside slant into a fade or drag if you see two high safeties sitting deep in a Cover 2 shell, since the slant window shrinks against a hard flat-and-curl combo underneath.
Use the running back check release as a shielded outlet against blitz-heavy Cover 0 or Cover 1 looks, since the slants take too long to develop against an unblocked rusher.
Pair this play with HB Zone Wk or HB Dive earlier in a series to get linebackers sitting on run keys, then come back to Quick Slants to hit the crossing routes before the second level can react.
