Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Strong Flood X-Cross aligns out of Shotgun Trips Y-Flex with 11 personnel, flooding the strong side with three levels of routes while the backside X receiver runs a deep crosser into the flooded area. The outside trips receiver runs a deep out, the middle trips receiver clears vertically up the seam, and the inside slot receiver runs a shallow flat/out route, creating a high-low-flat flood read. This is a zone beater designed to stress cover 3 and other three-level zone shells by overloading one side of the field while the crossing route provides a natural man beater answer against man coverage rotating away from the trips side.
Defensive Reads
Presnap look at the free safety depth and alignment, if he is shaded toward the trips side this flood concept will have a tougher time completing the deep out. Key the flat defender immediately after the snap since he determines whether the shallow flat route or the deep out is open first in the progression. Watch for a cornerback playing man on the crossing route, if he trails tightly from the backside this concept struggles unless the quarterback resets to the flood side. Cover 3 with a curl-flat defender sinking hard on the flat route opens up the deep out and crosser combination. Man coverage with underneath help defenders sitting in passing lanes can undercut the crossing route, so check for a user-controlled linebacker lurking in the middle of the field before committing to that throw.
Usage Tips
Presnap identify whether the defense is showing single high or two high, since this concept thrives against single high cover 3 shells with three deep defenders splitting the field evenly.
Your first read is the flat route out of trips, then work up to the deep out, and finally to the crossing route if the strong side is taken away by a fast flow linebacker or cloud corner.
Use this play on early downs to set up play-action or RPO shots later in a drive since the flood look forces linebackers and safeties to declare their drops quickly.
Hot route the middle trips receiver into a quick out if you see a linebacker sitting in a hook zone directly in his vertical release lane.
Pair this with Four Verticals or Dagger PoCo from the same Trips Y-Flex set to keep the defense guessing between flood concepts and vertical shot plays.
