Playbooks

HB Delay

Shotgun·Doubles HB Wk·11

Delay Pass Play

Likely unavailable in the playbook builder

This play belongs to no NFL team or scheme playbook, so it may not appear in the in-game builder.

Diagram coming soon

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

SetDoubles HB Wk

Personnel

111 RB · 1 TE · 3 WR

In 2 playbooks

Elites OffenseOffense MUT CPU Runs OffenseOffense

Breakdown

HB Delay is a designed delay concept out of Shotgun Doubles HB Wk that sends the running back on a delayed leak into the second level while the offensive line initially shows pass protection to sell the drop back. This is fundamentally a zone beater, exploiting linebackers who bite on their zone drop keys or blitz gaps, since the delayed release catches them flowing away from the delay lane. The primary read progression starts with the outside receiving routes to see if man coverage or a hard blitz forces a quick throw, then comes back down to the HB delay as the checkdown or primary target once the LBs vacate the middle of the field.

Defensive Reads

Read linebacker depth immediately after the snap. If the LBs drop hard into zone without eyeing the backfield, the delay lane opens up and the HB becomes an easy pitch and catch. Watch for a spy or lurk defender sitting in the shallow middle of the field. A user controlled defender hanging in that area can jump the route the instant the HB releases and turn it into a turnover. Identify blitz packages pre-snap by counting defenders on the line and in the second level. Overloaded blitzes are the best matchup for this play since rushers fly upfield and leave the delay lane wide open behind them. Against Cover 3 or Cover 4 zone shells, track the underneath zone defenders. If they widen with the outside routes, the middle of the field stays clear for the delay to work. Man coverage with no shallow help defeats this concept quickly because a linebacker matched man to man on the HB can mirror the delayed release and close the throwing window before the QB progresses to that read.

Usage Tips

Use HB Delay on early downs or in obvious passing situations where defenses expect a dropback and sit their linebackers deeper than usual, since that hesitation is exactly what the delay exploits.

Check pre-snap for stacked or blitz-heavy fronts. If you see six or seven defenders showing pressure, the delay becomes a built in answer to nano blitzes because the HB slips through the vacated middle while the blitz commits upfield.

Hot route the backside receiver into a quick out or slant if you diagnose man coverage immediately, giving you a faster answer than waiting on the delay to develop against man beaters.

Pair this play with RPO Power Peek or RPO Zone Peek in the same set to condition the defense to respect quick reads to the backfield, then hit HB Delay when they start jumping routes too fast.

Avoid calling this against disciplined zone defenses that spy the RB out of the backfield, since a linebacker sitting on the delay lane can blow up the entire concept for a loss.