Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Drive is a classic route combination out of Shotgun Box Y Off that pairs two crossing routes with a vertical clearout. The backside receiver runs a deep vertical to stretch the safety, while the two inside receivers work a dig and a shallow drive route crossing underneath, and the outside receiver to the play side runs a corner route to stretch the flat defender vertically. This is a man beater at its core, using the natural traffic from the crossing routes to shake linebackers and man corners, though the corner route also stresses the deep quarter defenders in zone. Primary read progression starts with the shallow drive route underneath, then works to the dig crossing behind it, and finally to the corner route if the safety bites down on the crossers.
Defensive Reads
Check linebacker depth before the snap, if they are sitting shallow expecting the drive route, look to the dig or corner route instead since the underneath route will be covered. Watch for a user controlled defender sitting in the middle of the field as a lurk threat, this defender can jump both the shallow drive route and the dig route if he reads the quarterback's eyes quickly. Identify single high versus two high safety shells pre-snap, single high Cover 3 or Cover 1 leaves the corner route vulnerable to a deep half defender rotating late, so throw with anticipation. Cover 4 defenses will have safeties sitting at depth to take away the corner route, this is where the underneath crossers become your bread and butter since the play is tagged as a Cover 4 beater. Watch for blitz packages that bring extra rushers off the edge, since this concept relies on timing, a fast blitz can force an early checkdown before the crossers develop, so keep an eye on the protection and be ready to hot route the backside vertical shorter.
Usage Tips
Take a pre-snap peek at the safety alignment, if you see two deep safeties sitting at depth expect the corner route to be your best shot against Cover 2 or Cover 4 once the crossers occupy the underneath defenders.
Hot route the backside vertical into a shorter option like a slant if you are getting good pressure and need a quicker release, this keeps the play viable against exotic blitz packages.
Use this against man coverage on early downs since the natural rub from the crossing routes creates easy separation, especially against press man corners who get picked off by traffic.
Pair this play with Y Trail or Quick Short Post from the same set to keep the defense guessing between crossing concepts and shorter breaking routes, this disguises your intentions pre-snap since the formation and personnel look identical.
On third and medium, prioritize the dig route since it settles in the intermediate zone right at the sticks and gives your quarterback a high percentage completion versus zone drops.
