Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
Flanker Dig lines up out of Shotgun Trio Offset with 11 personnel and attacks the middle of the field with a five man route concept. The flanker runs the namesake dig, sitting the route in with a hard break across the field as the primary read against zone, while the two receivers to the strongside run vertical routes to clear out the deep half and stack the safeties. The backside outside receiver runs a quick out and the slot underneath runs a shallow crosser working opposite the dig, giving the quarterback a built in checkdown against man coverage. This is a man and zone beater with the dig as the first read, progressing to the shallow cross if linebackers wall off the middle, then to the outside vertical against blown coverage.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify single high versus two high safety alignment since the dig route wants a single high shell to attack the vacated middle zone. Watch linebacker depth at the snap, if they sink hard and wall the dig throwing window then peel off to the shallow cross underneath. User controlled defenders sitting in the middle hook zone or playing lurk over the dig are the biggest threat, bait them with the vertical routes before committing to the throw. Cover 3 with a deep middle defender can undercut the dig if the user jumps the route early, so patience on the pump or subtle pocket movement helps freeze that defender. Man coverage with no safety help over the top gets exposed by the shallow cross and the dig combo, since both routes create natural picks and separation against tight man technique.
Usage Tips
Look for the dig route to sit down in soft spots against zone coverage, especially against a Tampa 2 shell where the deep middle safety has bailed out past the dig window.
Use the two vertical routes on the strongside to hold both safeties deep, opening up the dig for a clean throwing lane before linebackers can sink underneath it.
If you see man coverage pre-snap, key the shallow crosser as your first hot read since it creates natural separation working away from the dig traffic.
Pair this play with Verticals or PA Post Shot in the same set to keep defenses honest on deep shots, then come back to Flanker Dig once the safeties start creeping up.
Best used on second and medium to second and long where the sit route has room to develop before the pocket collapses, avoid calling this on third and short since the route takes time to break open.
