Playbooks
WR Under
Quick Reference
In 12 playbooks
Breakdown
WR Under is a play-action flood concept out of Pistol Wing Flex Close with 12 personnel. Off the play fake, the play sends four verticals up the field from the two inline receivers and the flanker, while the underneath receiver runs a shallow under route across the formation and the wing releases outside on a swing to the flat, creating a true four verts flood look with a checkdown valve. The primary read starts with the under route working across the middle against man coverage, then progresses to the seam and corner routes on the vertical stems, and finally to the swing route as the outlet against blitz or if the under gets picked off downfield.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and count defenders in the box since a light box with two deep safeties signals a zone shell built to take away the verticals. Watch the play side linebacker after the snap since a hard downhill trigger on the run fake opens up the under route and the seam behind him. Against Cover 3, key the flow of the middle linebacker into the under route's lane, if he sits the seam and corner routes have room to work. If the defense shows Cover 2 with corners jamming outside, expect the corner route to fight for the sideline while the seam threatens the deep hole between safeties. Beware user controlled defenders sitting in a lurk position over the under route, since a disciplined user rat can jump that shallow crosser and bait a costly turnover.
Usage Tips
Use this play on early downs when you have shown run action from this personnel group to keep linebackers honest on the play fake.
Pre-snap, identify single high versus two high safeties since the four verts stems put natural stress on a lone deep safety.
If you see man coverage, key the under route immediately since it creates instant separation against man defenders trying to trail across the field.
Hot route the swing man into a quick flat route if you diagnose an aggressive edge blitz, giving you a fast outlet before the vertical routes develop.
Pair this call with Zone Fake Jet or RPO Read Jet Slide earlier in a series so the defense respects the run action, then hit them with this play action shot when they bite on run fits.
