Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Crossers is a five-man route empty concept out of Shotgun Empty Bunch Open that stacks two deep crossers over a shallow drag and an out to the boundary, with a check-release flat route from the bunch. The outside receiver runs a deep post-cross to the far hash while the bunch TE runs a deep in-cross underneath him, creating a natural pick and high-low read across the middle. This is a man beater built to create rubs and separation against man coverage, with the primary read progressing from the deep crosser to the underneath crosser to the checkdown flat route.
Defensive Reads
Man coverage without safety help over the top gets beaten badly because the rub from the crossers creates instant separation for the user's second read. Watch for a user-controlled linebacker sitting in the middle zone since he can jump the underneath crosser if you telegraph the throw too early. Cover 3 zone defenses with a deep middle field defender can take away the deep crosser, so look to the flat route or the shallow drag as a checkdown. Pre-snap, if the corner over the bunch shows outside leverage, expect him to funnel the crossers inside into help, which favors throwing to the flat route instead. Blitz packages that bring extra rushers from the bunch side will leave the underneath crosser wide open in a soft zone, so get the ball out quickly before the pocket collapses.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, check for man coverage indicators like tight press alignment on the bunch receivers since the natural rub from the crossers will get instant separation against man defenders.
Use the deep crosser as your first read on any down and distance since it stretches the field horizontally and forces linebackers to widen out of their zone drops.
If the safety shows two-high pre-snap, hot route the outside out route into a deeper comeback to attack the void created by cornerbacks sinking with the crossers.
Pair this play with Middle Cross or Mesh Cross in your play-calling sequence to keep the defense guessing between over routes and shallow mesh concepts from the same formation.
Use this on third and medium situations since the layered crossers give you multiple completion windows if your first read is covered.
