Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Shake HB Corner is a Doubles HB Wk shotgun play built around a corner route breaking off the HB out of the backfield combined with two outside receivers running deep vertical clear outs on the near side and a slot fade/vertical combo on the far side. The near side TE runs a short out while the HB releases and breaks into a corner route just past the sticks, giving the QB a quick option against underneath defenders. This is primarily a man beater, since the HB corner route is designed to pick on linebackers and slot corners who cannot mirror the change of direction, while the two verticals on the far side stretch zone defenders vertically if the defense drops into a soft shell. Primary read progression starts with the HB corner as the first look in the flat to intermediate area, then works to the far side vertical routes if the underneath defender sinks with the corner route.
Defensive Reads
Presnap check linebacker depth and alignment over the HB, since a linebacker shaded toward the backfield signals man coverage and the corner route will be open against poor closing speed. Watch for user controlled defenders sitting in the shallow flat zone or lurking near the sticks, since a good user player can jump the HB corner route if they read it early. Post snap key the far side cornerback and safety leverage on the vertical routes, if the safety bites down on the underneath route the verticals behind him will be a big play opportunity. Identify blitz packages presnap by counting box defenders, if the defense brings extra rushers the HB corner route becomes a hot read since the HB may need to release quickly before pass protection breaks down. Against zone heavy shells with two deep safeties, the far side verticals stress the seams so watch which safety rotates late to help, since that indicates where the throwing window will be tightest.
Usage Tips
Use this play on second and medium to third and short situations where linebackers are likely to be in man coverage on the HB. Presnap identify if the defense is showing man coverage by checking if a linebacker or slot corner is lined up over the HB, since that alignment is the green light to trust the corner route as your first read. If the defense shows a two high safety zone shell, look to the far side verticals since zone defenders will have to choose between the deep routes and can be exploited by the vertical stretch. Motion the HB before the snap if available to get a clean presnap coverage read on whether the defense follows the HB with a defender, confirming man coverage. Pair this play with Slot Wheel or Y Cross in your play calling sequence to condition the defense to bite on shorter combination routes, then hit them with the HB corner route to punish overaggressive linebackers. Against zone heavy opponents, sequence this after Four Verticals to get defenders anticipating the vertical shell, opening the underneath corner route for an easier completion.
