Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 12 playbooks
Breakdown
Fake Jet HB Seam is a play-action shot play out of Shotgun Tight Y Off with 11 personnel that sells jet motion across the backfield before the QB pulls and drops into a seam concept. The route art shows two outside receivers running go routes up the boundary while the slot and TE break vertically up the seams, with the near seam runner (red) providing the primary read straight up the middle against a vacated linebacker or safety. The jet motion man releases flat along the line as a checkdown/screen outlet, giving the QB a built in escape if the seams are covered downfield. This is a man beater designed to exploit linebackers biting on the jet fake and to attack single high safety shells with the vertical seam and outside verticals.
Defensive Reads
Watch the middle linebacker depth at the snap, if he steps up hard to chase the jet motion the seam will be wide open for a big gain. Key the free safety's alignment pre-snap, a single high safety cheating to the play side boundary route tells you to lead with the seam route immediately. Look for a user controlled defender sitting in a shallow zone or lurking near the seam, that is the biggest threat to this concept and forces you to check down to the jet man in the flat. Cover 3 with a hard flowing Sam or Mike linebacker gets gashed by this concept since the seam sits in the void created by underneath zone rotation. Man coverage with no safety help over the top is the worst case for the defense, since both outside verticals and the seam route all have leverage advantages against trailing defenders.
Usage Tips
Use this on early downs or 2nd and short when defenses are primed to respect the jet sweep or jet touch pass tendencies you have already shown from this formation. Pre-snap, identify single high shells (Cover 1 or Cover 3) since the seam route will split the difference between the flowing linebackers and the deep safety. If the defense shows two high safeties, hot route the near seam to a slant or dig to shorten the throw against Cover 2 or Cover 4 zone drops. Sell the jet motion at full speed before the snap so linebackers flow with the fake, opening the seam lanes for your TE or slot receiver. Pair this play in a sequence with Jet Touch Pass and Zone Fake Jet from the same set so the defense has to respect the actual jet run and touch pass before you hit them with the deep seam shot.
