Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
H Mtn Flood H-Sneak out of Shotgun Trey Open is a flood concept to the closed side paired with a deep clearout route away from the flood. The outside receiver runs a deep comeback/pivot at the top of the screen, the slot runs an out breaking underneath it, and the motion man sneaks out to the flat, creating a three level flood read from deep to short. On the backside the far receiver runs a deep crossing dig away from traffic, giving the quarterback a true zone beater against Cover 3 by stretching one side of the field horizontally and vertically while the backside route punishes rotation. Primary read progression starts with the flat route, works up to the intermediate out, then climbs to the deep comeback if the flood is capped.
Defensive Reads
Key the deep safety pre snap, if he stays in the middle of the field it signals Cover 3 or Cover 1 and the flood side should be wide open underneath. Watch the flat defender at the snap, if he sinks with the underneath out route the flat throw to the motion man is the easy answer. If a linebacker or slot corner follows the H motion man across formation before the snap, that is man coverage and you should attack the deep comeback with a back shoulder throw. Beware of Cover 3 sky or buzz variations where a safety rotates down to the flat, since that defender can jump the underneath route and bait a turnover. Against zone blitz looks, watch for a lurking linebacker sitting in the shallow flood window, he can undercut the out route so be ready to climb to the deep comeback on the backside dig instead.
Usage Tips
Use pre snap motion to identify if the defense is playing man or zone based on whether a defender follows the H motion man across the formation.
This play is a Cover 3 beater so look for a single deep safety alignment pre snap and three flat defenders showing zone drops post snap before calling it.
On third and medium to long distance, throw the intermediate out route quickly if the flat defender sinks, since the sideline stack gives you a built in rhythm throw.
Pair this play with Curls or Y Stick HB Angle in the same set to keep defenses honest against both flood concepts and quick game answers from the same formation look.
If the defense shows Cover 4 or heavy safety help over the top, hot route the deep comeback into a shorter option and lean on the flat and out combination instead.
