Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Corndog is a flood concept out of Shotgun Bunch Str Nasty that overloads one side of the field with three vertical stems. From the bunch, one receiver runs a deep corner route, another breaks off into a quick out, and the third works a hitch underneath while the backside receiver runs a deep crosser away from the concept. The tight end releases into a flat route to occupy underneath defenders, creating a high low flood read that beats both man and Cover 3 coverage. Primary progression starts with the corner route as the shot play, then works down to the out and hitch based on how the flat and deep defenders react.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and alignment over the bunch side to determine if a Cover 3 or Cover 1 shell is being shown. If the corner route is being run with by a deep defender who stays over the top, look to the out route since the underneath defender has likely widened out. Watch for a user-controlled defender sitting in the throwing lane of the corner route, which signals a lurk technique designed to jump the flood concept. Man coverage with tight leverage on the bunch receivers is vulnerable to the out and hitch combination since defenders in phase on vertical stems will struggle to redirect on the sharp breaks. Zone blitzes with a corner or safety dropping into the flat can disrupt the timing of the flat route from the tight end, so be ready to check to the backside crosser if that flat defender sits.
Usage Tips
Use pre-snap motion out of the bunch to identify if the defense is playing man or zone based on how the defender travels with the motion man.
Against Cover 3, target the corner route first since it attacks the seam between the deep third defenders and the flat defender.
Against man coverage, the out route is your quick answer if you get a favorable matchup on the slot defender, especially versus a linebacker in coverage.
This play works best on early downs or third and medium since the flood concept gives you multiple layers to attack underneath and over the top.
Pair Corndog with Corndog Trail or Y Trail in your play-calling sequence so the defense has to respect both the flood look and the delayed breaking routes off similar formation and motion.
