Playbooks

Slant Spacing Dig

Shotgun·Bunch Wide·11
SlantDigSpacingPass PlayCover 3 BeaterCover 4 Beater
Play diagram for Slant Spacing Dig from Shotgun Bunch Wide in Madden 27

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

In 3 playbooks

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Breakdown

Slant Spacing Dig is a three level passing concept out of Shotgun Bunch Wide that attacks both hook zones and the deep middle. The backside receiver runs an outside breaking slant while the bunch releases into a spacing combo underneath, with one receiver sitting flat and another bending a dig across the field behind the linebackers. This is a Cover 3 and Cover 4 beater built to stretch zone defenders horizontally underneath while the dig sits down in the vacated middle void, and the primary read progression starts with the slant against man leverage, works to the underneath flat sit for a quick zone throw, then comes back to the dig as the deep crosser clears the middle of the field.

Defensive Reads

Read the depth of the underneath linebackers at the snap, if they sink hard to take away the spacing route the dig window behind them will be wide open. Watch for a single high safety showing Cover 3, this tips the dig as the primary answer since the flat defender cannot cover both the spacing route and the deep crossing route. Identify man coverage on the outside slant defender, if he is playing tight man technique with no help over the top take the slant immediately before he can recover. Beware of a user controlled lurk defender sitting in the intermediate middle zone, he can jump the dig route if the quarterback holds the ball too long. Cover 4 shells with matching zone rules can be vulnerable if the underneath defenders bite on the spacing route, creating a soft spot for the dig to settle into before the safety rotates over.

Usage Tips

Check the safety alignment before the snap, two deep safeties tips Cover 4 and should send you straight to the dig once it clears the linebackers, one deep safety means the slant window against Cover 3 flat defenders opens up early.

Use the slant as your first read versus man coverage since it creates instant separation off the line against a bunch alignment that forces defenders to work through traffic.

If the defense shows zone drops with linebackers sinking to the flat, hit the spacing route sitting underneath for a quick, safe completion before working the dig.

Pair this play with Cross Screen or Curl Flat from the same set to keep the defense guessing between quick game and the deeper dig shot, since both plays share the same bunch look pre snap.

Best used on second and medium to third and long where the dig has room to sit down and where defenses are more likely to play zone shells instead of man pressure.

Other Plays in Bunch Wide