Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 2 playbooks
Breakdown
Smash Posts lines up in Singleback Spread 10 personnel with both outside receivers releasing vertically before breaking hard to the corner (the smash element) while both slot receivers run posts underneath, angling into the middle of the field to occupy linebackers and safeties. This is a mirrored concept, meaning both sides of the field run the identical route combo, so you get the same read no matter which way you flow. It is a classic Cover 2 beater since the corner routes stretch the flat defenders vertically while the posts sit in the void that the deep half safeties vacate, but it also holds up against man coverage because the corner route can pull a trailing cornerback into the safety's zone. Primary read progression starts with the post route to the safety leverage, then works outside to the corner route if the safety jumps the underneath throw.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify whether the safeties are aligned in a two high shell or rotated to one high, since two high alignments are exactly what this concept is designed to exploit. Post-snap, key the flat defenders (corners or slot corners) to see if they sink with the corner route or stay flat footed, which tells you if the smash portion is open. Watch the post safety's break point, if he sits on the post route immediately he is likely being user controlled and the corner route behind him will be wide open. This play struggles against Cover 3 or Cover 1 with a deep middle robber, since a single high safety can shade toward either post and take away the crossing window. Man coverage with an underneath linebacker spy or zone blitz packages can disrupt the timing, since the post routes take longer to develop and are vulnerable to late pressure up the middle.
Usage Tips
Check pre-snap for two deep safeties before the snap, since this play is built to punish Cover 2 and Cover 4 shells that leave a soft spot between the flat defender and the deep half safety.
If you see man coverage with no help over the top, hot route one post into a slant or dig to shorten the throw and speed up your progression against a blitz look.
Use this on second and medium or third and long situations where the defense is more likely to sit in zone shells rather than crash the box or blitz.
Pair this call with Curl Flats or Pivot Slants earlier in a drive so the defense starts respecting shallow zone beaters, then hit them with Smash Posts once safeties start creeping down.
Against user-controlled safeties, look off the post side first to bait the user defender before snapping your eyes to the corner route for the explosive gain.
