Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Mtn Choice Wheels lines up out of Shotgun Wing Slot Offset with 12 personnel and shows a wheel and option combo to the trips side and a deep dig from the backside X. The outside receiver runs a wheel route up the sideline off a stalk release, the inside slot runs a choice/option route that breaks off the defender's leverage, and the flanker fills the underneath flat area for the checkdown while the backside receiver crosses the field on a deep in. The blocking is a standard pass protection look with no motion shown at the snap in this rep, and this is a man beater built to attack leverage with the wheel and option combo while giving you a zone beater dig if the defense drops into cover 3 or cover 4. Primary progression starts with the choice route based on the defender's technique, works to the wheel if the corner bites underneath, and comes back to the deep crossing dig against zone drops.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and corner alignment on the trips side since a single high safety struggles to help over the top of both the wheel and the dig. Watch for a linebacker or nickel defender sitting in the flat area because that defender determines if the choice route can settle or has to break vertical. Post-snap, key the corner's reaction to the choice route's first two steps, if he bails deep the option sits down for an easy completion underneath. Cover 2 with capped corners can take away the wheel route by squeezing the sideline, so expect the quarterback to work the dig or checkdown in that shell. Man blitz packages with a linebacker spy or lurk defender in the middle of the field can jump the backside dig, so protect the quarterback's blind side and get the ball out quickly if you see extra rushers.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify whether the corner over the choice route is playing inside or outside leverage because that dictates which way the option breaks.
If you see man coverage with the corner cheating inside, take the wheel route shot down the sideline since the choice route occupies the underneath defender.
Against zone shells like cover 3 or cover 4, look immediately to the backside dig since the choice and wheel combo can get taken away by deep zone help.
Use this on second and long or third and medium situations where the defense is likely to play zone, then pair it with Mtn Counter or Inside Zone on early downs to keep the defense honest against the run.
Sequence this with Fake Jet HB Wheel or Fake Jet HB Seam later in a series once the defense starts keying on the wheel route so you can hit the same shot off run action.
