Playbooks

Hawks Post KO

Shotgun·Spread·10
PostPass Play
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Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

In 1 playbook

MUT KO Offensive Mastermind OffenseOffense

Breakdown

Hawks Post KO is a deep post-shot concept out of Shotgun Spread 10 personnel designed to attack single high and split safety shells with a vertical post as the primary read. The route combo pairs an outside post with underneath crossers and a flat or drag route to hold linebackers and clear the middle of the field for the post breaker. This is a man beater at its core, since the post win against off man or a lurking corner is the whole point, but it also stresses cover 3 rotation if the post threatens the seam before the safety can rotate over. Primary progression starts with the post, works to the intermediate crosser if the post is capped, and checks down to the flat route as the last resort.

Defensive Reads

Identify single high safety pre-snap, if the free safety is dead center in a two deep or robber shell, expect a defender rotating late to help on the post, so time your throw before the rotation completes. Watch cornerback press versus off alignment at the line, press man with no safety help over the top is the ideal look for the post to win deep. Key the linebacker depth at the snap, shallow linebacker drops signal zone coverage underneath and tell you the crosser will be there as a checkdown option. Beware user controlled lurk defenders sitting in the passing lane of the post route, if you see a defender flash toward the middle of the field post snap, be ready to reset to the flat or crosser instead of forcing the window. Cover 2 and Cover 4 shells with safeties staying deep can shut this down hard, since the post has no room to work behind the corner and in front of the safety, so switch to a boundary shot or hitch seam concept against those looks.

Usage Tips

Take a pre-snap look at the safety alignment before the snap, if you see a single high safety cheating toward the post side, be ready to move to your second read immediately instead of forcing the throw.

Use motion or a quick shift to confirm man coverage, if the defender follows across the formation you know the post has a favorable one on one matchup against off man or trail technique.

Hot route the underneath crosser into a deeper option against zone heavy defenses that sit on shallow routes, this keeps linebackers from squatting on your checkdown.

This play works best on second and long or third and medium situations where defenses expect a quick game or checkdown, the post shot punishes lazy zone drops and aggressive man press looks.

Pair this call with Quick Slants or Slot Outs earlier in a series to bait linebackers into sitting low, then come back to Hawks Post KO once the defense shows a tendency to jump underneath routes.

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