Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Z Spot is a bunch concept built off the classic Spot combination, run from Shotgun Bunch Y-Flex with 11 personnel. On the bunch side the diagram shows a corner route stemming vertically up top, a quick out settling underneath at the sideline, and a hitch/spot route sitting in the flat, while the backside receiver runs a corner route isolated one-on-one. The play is a zone beater designed to punish Cover 3 by stacking the corner-flat-spot triangle to attack the flat defender and hole player simultaneously, and the primary read progression starts with the spot route underneath, works up to the flat/out route, then climbs to the corner route if the zone widens or a linebacker gets caught in conflict.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify the deep safety alignment: a single high safety with two corners rolled to the sideline usually signals Cover 3, which is exactly what this concept is designed to shred. Watch the flat defender at the snap since he has to choose between the spot route sitting underneath and the out route working to the boundary, and whichever he leaves open is your throw. Key the hole player or the linebacker responsible for the underneath zone in the bunch, because if he sits too flat footed on the spot route the corner route behind him will be wide open. Against man coverage, look for a user controlled defender jumping the underneath spot route early, which tells you to work the corner route or the backside isolated route immediately. If the defense shows two deep safeties post-snap with the corners playing outside leverage, expect Cover 2 or Cover 4, and prioritize the backside corner route before the underneath options get taken away by an aggressive zone drop.
Usage Tips
Use pre-snap motion or a hard count to confirm if the defense is showing a hard Cover 3 shell before the snap, since this play is built to attack that hole defender in the honey hole.
If you see man coverage with the corner pressed on the bunch, hot route the spot receiver into a quick option route or slide the flat route to a speed out for a cleaner separation.
Throw the underneath spot route on 3rd and short or 3rd and medium since it sits down quickly and gives you a safe completion versus zone drops.
Pair this play with Curls Y Swirl or Spacing from the same set so you can run complementary zone beaters without changing formation and keep the defense guessing pre-snap.
Against Cover 4 or Cover 2 shells, lean on the backside isolated corner route since that one-on-one matchup can win over the top if the safety cheats toward the bunch.
