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Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
Flanker Dig lines up from Singleback Doubles Flex 11 personnel with two receivers stacked to the left, an inline receiver to the right, and a tight end attached to the formation. At the snap the outside left receiver runs a corner route, the inside left receiver runs a deep vertical seam, the tight end runs a short flat/out route underneath, and the backside X to the right runs a deep dig that crosses the field from right to left at intermediate depth. This is a man beater built off the dig crossing the field to find grass against man coverage while the corner and seam routes stretch the defense vertically to hold safeties, with the flat route underneath serving as a checkdown against a soft zone; the primary read progression starts with the dig, then works to the flat route, and finally to the vertical shots on the left if the middle of the field is cleared out.
Defensive Reads
Man user threats will try to trail the dig route across the field, so watch for a defender sitting in the throwing lane before releasing the ball. Zone defenses like Cover 3 or Cover 4 leave a hole for the dig to settle into if the linebackers drop too shallow, so key the depth of the underneath linebackers post-snap. Blitz packages that bring extra pressure off the edge will speed up the quarterback's clock, so check protection or account for the tight end staying in versus known nano blitz looks. Safety alignment pre-snap tells the story: two high safeties invite the dig and corner routes to work against softer coverage, while a single high safety means the vertical seam route on the left is more likely to draw a spy or lurk defender. If a linebacker or safety sinks into a deep middle lurk after the snap, abandon the dig and check down to the flat route or the seam route on the opposite hash.
Usage Tips
Pre-snap, identify if the defense is showing single high or two high safeties because the dig route needs the middle of the field to open up against Cover 3 or Cover 1 to hit its window.
If you see man coverage with no safety help over the top, work the dig first since it creates natural separation crossing the field away from the defender's momentum.
Against Cover 2 or Cover 4 zone shells, hot route the tight end's flat route into a delayed drag or use it as your first read since the underneath zone will be softer than the deep dig window.
Use this play on second or third and medium situations where the dig's break point matches the sticks, and pair it with Curl Flats or Slot Cross from the same set to keep the defense guessing between quick underneath throws and the intermediate crosser.
Sequence this play after running HB Power O or HB Dive from Doubles Flex to draw linebackers up, then hit the dig in the vacated middle zone once the defense starts cheating toward the run fits.
