Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Double Spot from Shotgun Tight Flex is a Cover 3 beater built on mirrored spot concepts to each side of the formation. On the right, the outside receiver runs a corner route while the slot works a quick hitch underneath and the inline TE/H-back settles into the flat, forming the classic spot triangle of corner, flat, and hitch. On the left, the receiver runs a deep post while the inside receiver breaks off a short curl underneath, giving the quarterback a mirrored high low read against zone drops. The primary progression starts with the spot side flat-to-corner read, then works back to the post side curl if the corner route is capped by a deep third defender.
Defensive Reads
Key the flat defender on the spot side snap to snap, if he sinks with the corner route the flat and hitch are wide open underneath. Watch for a robber or lurk linebacker sitting in the middle of the field, since he can jump the curl route on the post side if the quarterback stares it down. Against Cover 3 with a static Sam or Will linebacker, the corner route will be capped, so bait the QB into the flat and hitch by dropping the flat defender late. Press man corners on the outside routes force the QB to hold the ball longer, giving user blitzers or a delayed A gap blitz time to disrupt the timing. Two high safety shells take away the deep post on the left side, so shift the underneath zone defenders to squeeze the curl and flat routes and force a checkdown into contested space.
Usage Tips
Use this on third and short to third and medium since the underlying hitch and flat routes give the quarterback a safe, high percentage checkdown against zone drops.
Pre-snap identify single high versus two high safeties because the corner route on the spot side only opens up if the deep defender is rotating away from that hash.
If the defense shows man coverage with press corners, hot route the outside corner route into a slant or hitch to beat off-man leverage rather than forcing the low percentage corner throw.
Pair this play with Stick or Frisco in the same set so the defense sees a similar backfield and route stem picture but has to respect both the flat-curl combo and the deep spot triangle.
Against Cover 3, work the spot side flat defender first, since if he widens with the flat route the underneath hitch sits in the vacated zone for an easy completion.
