Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
PA Flood out of Shotgun Split Slot Open sells a play-action fake before flooding the right side of the field with three levels of routes. The outside receiver runs a deep vertical up the numbers, the inside slot man clears out on a corner route, and the flanker in the backfield releases on a flat route that stems into the red route drawn as the primary read, a horizontal breaking pattern that sits at the sticks. On the backside, the lone receiver runs a deep dig up the seam as a hold-up option if the safety cheats to the flood side. This is a classic Cover 3 beater built to stress the flat defender and deep third defender simultaneously, with the primary read progressing from the shallow flat route to the corner route and finally to the deep vertical if the defense rolls coverage away from the flood.
Defensive Reads
Key the middle linebacker and strong safety depth at the snap, since a shallow strong safety alignment signals Cover 3 or Cover 1, both of which the flood concept is designed to exploit. Watch the flat defender, typically a cornerback or outside linebacker, to see if he widens with the shallow route or sits, because if he sits the corner route behind him becomes wide open in the soft spot of a Cover 3 shell. If the defense shows two deep safeties pre-snap, expect the deep vertical route to be doubled, so shift the progression toward the flat and corner routes rather than forcing the ball deep. Beware of a user-controlled defender dropping into a lurk position near the corner route, since smart defenders will sit in that flood zoneanticipating the second read and jump the route for a pick. Man coverage with underneath blitz pressure is the biggest threat to this concept, since the play-action fake takes extra time to develop and a fast interior blitz can collapse the pocket before the flood routes fully separate.
Usage Tips
Use this play on early downs when you want to establish play-action off your run game tendencies, since the fake will hold linebackers and freeze underneath zone defenders just long enough to open the flat route. Pre-snap, identify if the defense is showing a single high safety look, since that confirms Cover 3 and makes the flood concept a high value call. If the corner playing the flat route sinks too deep or the defense shows Cover 4 quarters shell, hot route the shallow flat man into a quick out or speed motion him before the snap to manufacture natural leverage against man coverage. Pair this play with Backs Cross or Mesh from the same set to keep defenders guessing between horizontal crossing concepts and vertical flood stress, forcing linebackers to respect both the shallow crossers and the deep flood shots. On third and medium, prioritize the corner route read first since it settles into the void between the flat and deep third defenders, but always be ready to reset to the checkdown flat route if the corner blitzes off the edge and forces a quick throw.
