Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 2 playbooks
Breakdown
WR Stick N Out lines up out of Pistol Tight Y Off Flex with 11 personnel and shows a route combo built to attack both zone and man coverage. To the backside, the two receivers run a shallow drag and comeback combo with the outside man running flat before working back toward the sideline, while the other crosses underneath. On the frontside, the slot runs a stick route that sits down in the throwing lane while the outside receiver breaks on an out toward the sideline, and the back releases on a wheel route up the sideline out of the backfield. The primary read starts with the stick to out combo on the frontside, working from the stick sitting underneath to the out breaking to the boundary, then bouncing to the wheel route as a late-arriving vertical option if the flat is jumped.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and corner alignment on the frontside since press man or hard outside leverage tells you the stick and out combo can be picked apart by the underneath sit route. Watch the slot defender at the snap, if he widens hard with the out route the stick will be wide open in the void behind him. Key the flat defender or nickel corner on the backfield wheel route, if he bites on the out or crashes downhill the wheel is uncovered for a big gain up the sideline. Against zone coverage, identify whether the underneath linebackers are dropping to a hook zone or spying the middle, since a shallow drop leaves the stick route uncontested. This concept struggles against a hard match zone or a defense that trails the wheel route with a linebacker while keeping the corner deep, so recognize disguised zone coverages with delayed rotation to avoid forcing a throw into a trap.
Usage Tips
Use this play on early downs when you want a high percentage stick concept with a wheel route as a home run shot against aggressive corners. Check the defensive alignment pre-snap and if you see a single high safety with corners playing tight, hot route the backside comeback into a deeper route to stress the middle of the field. Against zone shells, throw the stick first since it settles in the soft spot between the linebackers and underneath zone defenders. If the defense shows blitz with the slot corner crashing, get the ball out quickly on the stick or bail to the flat before the wheel develops. Pair this play with Cheat Fk Swing Wheel or RPO Read Flat Wheel from the same set so the defense has to respect wheel route leverage on every snap, then hit them with WR Stick N Out when they start jumping the flat routes.
