Playbooks

RPO Alert Spot Wheel

Shotgun·Duo Slot Open·20
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This play belongs to no NFL team or scheme playbook, so it may not appear in the in-game builder.

Quick Reference

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Breakdown

RPO Alert Spot Wheel is a run pass option out of Shotgun Duo Slot Open that pairs an inside zone run with a spot concept and a wheel route tag from the backfield or slot. The quarterback reads the alert defender, typically a flowing linebacker or crashing safety, to decide between handing off the zone run or pulling and throwing the spot combo with the wheel serving as the home run shot against man coverage. This is a true hybrid RPO built to punish overaggressive box defenders while giving you a zone beater underneath and a man beater vertical shot on the wheel route.

Defensive Reads

Pre-snap, identify the alert defender the quarterback is keying, usually the play side linebacker or a slot corner, since his run fit or coverage drop dictates the entire play. Watch safety depth and rotation, a two high shell that rotates down late into the box after the snap is trying to disguise a run blitz while still tagging the wheel route in man, this is the look that shuts the play down if you are slow to react. Man coverage with no safety help over the wheel is the shell this play dominates, the linebacker or nickel defender simply cannot run with a wheel route without deep help. Zone coverage with a flat defender sitting on the spot route and a deep third defender reading the wheel takes away both options, if you see this post snap check down or reset with a run play from the same formation. Watch for a nano blitz or slanting defensive line that crashes the running lane immediately, if the alert defender is untouched and closing fast, the RPO read should already be pulling to the pass side before the box count even finishes settling.

Usage Tips

Check the box count before the snap and if the defense has six or more in the box, lean toward throwing rather than handing off since the numbers favor the pass side of the alert. Identify single high versus two high shells early because single high with man coverage on the wheel defender is your green light to trust the vertical shot over the top. Use hot routes to convert the underneath spot flat route into a quick out if you see a hard flat defender sitting on it, this keeps the RPO alive against aggressive corners. This play pairs well with Inside Zone as a base run and RPO Alert Bubble as a change up, running all three from the same look forces linebackers to freeze on their run fits and opens up the wheel route against late reacting defenders. Best used on early downs, first and second and short to medium, when defenses are more willing to sell out against the run and leave the wheel defender isolated.

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