Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Flood from Singleback Ace Slot 12 personnel stacks three routes to the same side for a classic three level flood concept. The outside receiver runs a deep vertical/corner up the sideline, the slot runs a deep out breaking route sitting at intermediate depth, and the inline TE releases to the flat, while the backside receiver runs a deep dig crossing back underneath. This is a zone beater built to attack Cover 3 and Cover 2 by stacking three defenders vertically on one side, and the read progression goes deep to intermediate to flat based on which defender the flat foot or curl/flat player commits to.
Defensive Reads
Key the safety depth and width pre-snap since a two high shell that rotates late signals Cover 3 or Cover 4 match, both of which this flood is designed to stress. Watch the curl/flat defender's first two steps after the snap, if he sinks with the corner route the flat is open, if he widens with the TE the deep out sits down in the window behind him. User the deep third defender on the flood side to jump the corner route and force the quarterback to check down. Man coverage with no safety help over the top shuts this down quickly since all three routes stack in the same area for a defender to sit on. Watch for a nano blitz off the edge on the flood side since the TE releasing into the flat may not get help, forcing a quick throw before the route develops.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify if the defense is showing a single high safety shell because this play is built specifically to punish Cover 3 rotation. Look at the flat defender or curl/flat linebacker before the snap to guess whether he will sink under the corner route or widen to the flat TE. If you see man coverage indicators like corners in press with no help over the top, hot route the flat TE into a quicker option or check into a man beater from this set instead. Use play action shots or Verts on early downs to bait the safety up, then dial up Flood on third and medium once the defense starts cheating toward the flat. Pair this with Weak Flood or PA Scissors Flood to keep the defense guessing on which side the flood concept is coming from, since both attack similar zone landmarks from mirrored or shifted alignments.
