Playbooks
Redzone Under
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Redzone Under out of Shotgun Trey Open Offset is a play-action flood concept built to attack zone shells near the goal line. From the Trey side, the outside receiver runs a go route to clear the deep third while the middle receiver works a corner route breaking to the sideline, and the inside slot runs a drag underneath crossing the field to the opposite hash for an in-and-out flood read. The backside receiver on the weak side runs a flat route off the play-action fake, giving the quarterback a three-level answer against Cover 3 and Cover 2 shells with the drag as the primary read against zone drops and the corner as the man beater against tight coverage.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify single high versus two high safety alignment, since Cover 3 leaves the deep middle exposed to the corner route while Cover 2 compresses the sideline throw. Watch the flat defender on the backside, if he widens with the flat route immediately the drag route has a soft spot to sit in against zone coverage. Key the middle linebacker depth after the play-action fake, a linebacker who bites hard on the run fake creates a throwing lane for the drag crossing route underneath. Man coverage shows up through receiver alignment and press technique, if the corner is aligned tight and trailing the corner route receiver, expect a contested catch situation that favors the offense with a well timed throw. This play struggles against a disciplined Cover 3 zone with a rangy deep middle defender who can undercut the corner route, and it gets shut down entirely by an aggressive nano blitz that beats the protection before the play-action fake sells.
Usage Tips
Use this in true redzone situations inside the 20 where vertical space is compressed and defenses lean on zone shells to protect the end zone.
Read the safety depth pre-snap, if you see a single high safety cheat toward the trey side, the backside flat and drag combo will be wide open on the crossing read.
Hot route the backside flat defender into a quick out if you diagnose man coverage across the board, since the corner route up top becomes your man beater against press or bump technique.
Pair this with Y Corner KO or Y Corner from the same set to keep defenses guessing between the trey side flood and a true corner shot, forcing linebackers to widen their drops.
Best on second or third down inside the 10 yard line when defenders sell out on the run fake, since the play-action freezes linebackers just long enough to open the drag route window.
Avoid calling this against heavy blitz packages unless you have a quick flat check, since the deep routes take time to develop and the drag needs a clean throwing lane.
