Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Y Stick out of Singleback Wing Pair Heavy (12 personnel) shows a classic Stick concept run to the closed side with a vertical seam/streak from the inside slot receiver, a corner route breaking outside from the outside receiver, and a shallow out from the backside X receiver. The vertical route occupies the middle of the field while the stick out and corner stretch the flat and sideline, creating a horizontal and vertical stretch on any underneath defender. This is a man and zone beater built for quick, high percentage throws, with the primary read progression going stick out to corner to backside shallow, letting the quarterback work outside in based on how the flat defender reacts.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify the flat defender assigned to the stick out route. If he is playing tight to the line in an aggressive alignment, expect him to jump the out and leave the corner route open behind him. Check safety depth over the top. A single high safety struggles to help on the corner route if the linebacker or nickel is occupied by the stick out, so look for the ball to go there against Cover 3 or Cover 1. Watch for a user-controlled linebacker sitting in the short middle zone. If he sinks into the vertical seam route immediately at the snap, the quarterback should redirect to the stick out or backside shallow instead. Zone blitz or a nano blitz off the edge can disrupt the timing of this quick game concept, so key the defensive line alignment and any walked-up linebackers before the snap. Cover 2 with a hard-charging corner on the flat route is the biggest threat to this play since it removes the easy stick out throw and forces the quarterback to work the tighter window on the corner or shallow route.
Usage Tips
Use this on third and short to third and medium since the stick out route is designed to move the chains against man and zone alike.
Check the flat defender before the snap. If he sits at depth, throw the stick out quickly. If he crashes downhill on the run fake or bites on play action elsewhere in your sequence, hit the corner route behind him.
Pair Y Stick with Mtn Power O or 26 Duo in the same personnel to keep the defense honest against the run look before hitting them with the quick game.
Against zone shells, key the flat defender and the underneath linebacker in the middle. If the linebacker sinks into the vertical seam, work the stick out to the flat.
Against man coverage with no help underneath, the corner route is a strong rub against tight man technique since the stick out route occupies the nickel or linebacker in the flat.
Use hot routes to convert the backside shallow into a drag if you need an extra layer of separation versus blitz-heavy man looks.
