Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Cheat Clearout Drag runs out of the Shotgun Bunch Wide Nasty set with 11 personnel and pre-snap motion to shift the bunch look before the snap. The bunch receivers work a clearout concept, with one receiver stemming vertically up the boundary and another running a deep corner route to occupy the safety and cornerback while the drag man works underneath. The inside receiver runs the red drag route across the field at a shallow depth, while a second underneath route breaks outside toward the flat and a fourth route climbs vertically up the seam on the opposite side to stretch the defense high and low. This is a man beater at its core, using the clearout action to isolate the drag against linebackers and create natural rub traffic against man coverage, though the vertical stretch also punishes zone defenders who sit short. The primary read progression starts with the drag crossing the field, moves to the flat route if the drag is taken away, and works to the vertical seam or clearout route on the backside if the defense drops deep.
Defensive Reads
Key the middle linebacker at the snap, since if he sits on the drag route without carrying deep it signals zone coverage and you should look immediately to the vertical seam or corner route Watch the cornerback aligned over the clearout receiver, if he bails deep at the snap it confirms man or zone and opens a passing window underneath for the drag User a linebacker or safety in the shallow zone to jump the drag route, this play lives and dies on that crossing route so taking it away forces the quarterback to hold the ball Disguise your coverage shell pre-snap and rotate a safety down into the drag lane after the snap to bait the quarterback into an early throw that your underneath defender can undercut This concept struggles against zone coverage with a robber or lurk defender sitting in the shallow middle zone, since that defender can jump the drag route and force the quarterback to work the outside flat or vertical option instead
Usage Tips
Use the pre-snap motion to identify if the defense is playing man or zone, since a defender following the motion man confirms man coverage and sets up the drag as your top option
Attack this play on second and medium to third and short since the drag route provides a reliable underneath conversion target against most coverage shells
Combine Cheat Clearout Drag with Cheat Post Slot Cross in your play-calling sequence, since both use similar bunch clearout action but attack the middle of the field differently and keep defenders guessing
Hot route the flat route into a quick out or speed out against teams that sit their linebackers in shallow zones to give yourself a faster underneath answer than the drag
Look to call this on early downs against defenses that show aggressive linebacker blitz looks, since the drag route crosses through vacated underneath zones quickly and beats blitz pressure before it arrives
