Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Verticals Y Option lines up out of Shotgun Y Off Trips with 11 personnel, sending both outside trips receivers vertical up the seams while the backside X runs an out and up the sideline. The inside trips receiver (Y) works an option route off the ball, sitting or breaking based on the linebacker or nickel defender's depth, while the running back releases on a vertical stem up the middle as a fifth threat against soft coverage. This is a Cover 2 and Cover 3 beater built to stress the deep half or deep third with two verticals to the trips side, using the Y option and RB seam as the answer against zone drops underneath.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and alignment: if both safeties are deep and split wide, this indicates Cover 2 and the seams between the corner and safety are open for the verticals. Watch the flow of the middle linebacker after the snap, since the Y option route is designed to sit right in his passing lane if he drops to a shallow zone. Against Cover 3, key the deep third defender to the trips side; if he widens with the outside vertical, the inside seam and the RB release become the throwing lanes. If you see a user-controlled safety sitting on the middle of the field pre-snap, be wary of a lurking underneath defender ready to jump the Y option route. Man coverage with no help over the top on the verticals is a green light to push the ball deep instead of settling for the option route underneath.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify whether the safeties are showing two-high or rotating to single-high, since this play is designed to attack the seams vacated by Cover 2 or Cover 3 shells.
If the defense shows man coverage, hot route the Y option into a quick out or speed out to beat off-man corners before the double verticals can develop.
Target the Y option route as your first read against zone since it settles into the void behind linebackers and in front of deep defenders.
Use this play on second and long or third and medium situations where defenses are more likely to sit in zone shells and give up the intermediate window.
Pair this with Curls or Return Curls earlier in a series to bait linebackers into sitting shallow, then hit Verticals Y Option to attack over the top once they bite on the underneath routes.
