Playbooks
Breakdown
Motion Zone Split is an inside zone run out of Pistol 11 personnel with pre-snap motion sending a receiver across the formation to check for man coverage and adjust the numbers at the point of attack. The offensive line executes a zone blocking scheme, taking double team steps at the point of attack before working to the second level linebackers, while the fullback or tight end seals the edge. The primary read progression starts with the pre-snap motion defender, then goes to the play side double team combo block to identify the first bubble the running back should press before working through his zone landmarks.
Defensive Reads
Watch the linebacker depth at the snap, if they crash down hard on the zone flow the cutback lane opens up immediately behind the center. Key the safety rotation before the snap, a single high safety shell means the defense is likely selling out on the run and you should look for the backside bubble. Track whether the defender assigned to the motion receiver trails him man to man, this confirms man coverage and tells you the play side alignment is softer against the run. Look for a stacked front with linebackers at depth of four yards or less, this is the look that shuts down inside zone since it eliminates the second level running lanes before they develop. User controlled defenders sitting in the A or B gap pre-snap are the biggest threat to this play, so if you see a user spy the interior gaps consider checking to a perimeter run instead.
Usage Tips
Use the motion pre-snap to bait linebackers into showing man or zone before the snap, if the defender follows the motion man across the formation you know you are getting man coverage and can key on the backside cutback lane. Run this on early downs like first and second and short to medium yardage situations where defenses are not yet keyed into a heavy blitz look. Pair this with Motion Counter Y and Inside Zone Wk in the same set so defenses cannot sit on the same zone flow read every snap. Hot route the motion receiver into a quick out or bubble if you see a blitz coming from that side to turn this into an impromptu RPO look. Trust your zone blocking combo up front and press the play side hole first, only cutting back if the backside linebacker overcommits to the initial flow.
