Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Charger Y-Sail is a classic sail concept run from Shotgun Doubles Y-Flex with 11 personnel, and it is a strong Cover 2 and Cover 3 beater. On the backside, two receivers run a deep comeback and a shallow crosser underneath it, creating a natural high-low read away from the strength. On the strong side, the Y (TE) runs the corner route up the seam and out, the outside receiver runs a deep vertical clear-out, and the slot runs an out route to the flat that sits underneath the corner, forming the classic sail stretch from deep to intermediate to shallow. The primary read progression starts with the corner route from the Y attacking the flat defender's zone, then works down to the flat route underneath if the corner is squeezed, with the backside comeback as a late-window answer against off coverage.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check corner alignment on the strong side, since a corner playing off with outside leverage is inviting the flat route and daring you to test the corner route over the top. Watch the strong safety depth and rotation, because a two high shell that stays static is vulnerable to the Y corner route splitting the seam, while rotation down to the flat signals Cover 3 and opens the underneath flat throw. Key the flat defender's first two steps after the snap, since if he sinks with the corner route the flat is wide open, and if he jumps the flat route the corner should be uncontested behind him. This concept struggles against a hard match Cover 4 or pattern-matching Cover 6, where the corner sinks and the safety rolls to take away both levels of the sail concept, so have a run check or backside comeback ready. Watch for a user-controlled defender lurking in the flat or sitting the corner route, since sail concepts are exploitable by smart user play if the QB stares down the strong side, so use the backside comeback as your answer to a jumped read.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify whether the strong side safety is rotating down to help on the corner route, since that determines if you throw the sail concept or check backside to the comeback route. Against Cover 2, the Y corner route sitting between the corner and safety is your money throw, so hold your read until the corner fully commits to the flat before ripping it over the top. Against Cover 3, work the flat route underneath the sail concept since the deep third defender should widen with the corner route from the Y. Use this on second and medium to second and long, since the sail concept needs time to develop and the sticks are far enough away that the underneath flat route is not an automatic checkdown. Pair Charger Y-Sail with Charger Cross or Charger Seams in the same set so defenses cannot sit on the flat route without opening up crossing and seam windows on subsequent calls.
