Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
HB Slash is a power run out of Singleback Bunch X Nasty that hands the ball to the HB and sends him on a slashing path toward the off tackle gap, reading the play side double team to kick out the edge before cutting up through the hole. The Nasty personnel means an extra blocker (jumbo TE/tackle look) is packed in tight to the formation, giving you a heavier surface to run behind on the play side. This is a pure run play with no route concept to beat man or zone coverage, and the primary read progression for the ball carrier is press the play side double team, read the kick out block on the edge defender, then cut off the puller or the lead blocker into the alley.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check linebacker depth and alignment; if they are crashed down tight to the box, HB Slash will have a tougher path to the second level. Look at the defensive end and outside linebacker on the play side edge, since the kick out block is designed to displace that defender and if he holds his ground the cutback lane disappears. Post-snap, user the play side linebacker or defensive end to string out the kick out block and force the HB to cut back into a clogged lane. Watch for a nano blitz or edge blitz from the play side, since a fast edge defender can beat the kick out block before the HB gets to the crease. Stacked fronts and gap-sound run defense with a defender assigned to every gap take away the cutback lane HB Slash relies on, while light boxes with overaggressive linebackers are the most vulnerable to this concept.
Usage Tips
Use pre-snap to identify the box count and check if the defense has stacked an extra defender to the play side edge before snapping into HB Slash.
If you see a heavy box with 7 or 8 defenders, consider hot routing your slot or bunch receiver into a quick out or checking to a different play since the numbers will not favor the run.
Pair HB Slash with Cheat HB Slash in the same set so you can run the same look with a modified blocking scheme, keeping defenders guessing on which gap the kick out block hits.
Run this on early downs (1st and 10 or 2nd and short) when defenses are more likely to sit in base fronts rather than nickel or dime packages that remove run support.
Sequence HB Slash with PA Boot or PA Counter from this same set later in a series so linebackers who bit on the run action get gashed by the play action pass concepts.
