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Quick Reference
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Breakdown
Flood out of Shotgun 5WR Trips overloads one side of the field with three vertical stems stacked at different depths: the outside receiver runs a deep go up the sideline, the middle trips receiver breaks off a corner route into the flat area between the levels, and the inside receiver runs a shallow flat route underneath. On the backside, the single receiver runs a deep crossing route to hold the far safety. This is a classic Cover 3 beater that floods three levels of one sideline, forcing a single defender to declare on multiple routes. The primary read progression starts with the deep sideline shot, works down to the corner route in the intermediate window, and finishes with the flat route as the checkdown.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety alignment: a single high safety signals Cover 3 or Cover 1, both of which this flood concept is designed to attack. Watch the flat defender to the trips side post-snap since if he sinks with the corner route, the underneath flat route will be wide open for an easy checkdown. Key the deep third defender to the trips side: if he widens with the go route, the corner route sitting behind him becomes the primary window. This concept struggles against Cover 4 or Cover 2 with two deep safeties since the extra deep defender can help bracket the vertical routes and take away the sideline shot. Watch for a user controlled lurk defender sitting in the shallow zone since he can jump the flat route and undercut the easiest completion in the progression.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify if the defense is showing a single high safety since that confirms Cover 3 or Cover 1 and opens up the flood concept to the trips side.
If the corner over the outside receiver is playing deep off coverage, take the shot to the go route immediately off the snap for an explosive play.
Against zone defenses with a hard flat defender, work the middle read to the corner route since it settles into the void behind the underneath zone and in front of the deep third.
Use this play on second and long or third and medium situations where you need a defined high low read against zone shells.
Pair this with Four Verticals or Levels from the same formation to keep the defense honest, then dial up Flood once they start sitting on shorter routes.
