Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
Spacing out of Singleback Wing Pair spreads receivers horizontally to attack zone drops with quick, high-low route spacing. The diagram shows the backside receiver running a vertical release into a corner/sit route, the two receivers to the play side working a hitch/out combo underneath, and the tight end sitting down in the shallow flat area while the outside receiver on that side clears vertically. The primary progression starts with the underside flat/hitch route as the first read, then works to the corner route breaking outside if the flat is taken away, making this a classic Cover 3 and Cover 4 zone beater built on spacing the underneath defenders.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check safety depth and corner alignment, two deep safeties with corners playing soft usually signal Cover 4 or Cover 2, which this play is designed to exploit. Watch the flat defender post-snap, if he sits on the hitch route immediately look to the corner route for the window behind him. Beware of Cover 3 sky or buzz variations where the flat defender jumps the shallow route early, this can bait a bad throw into a jump ball situation. User linebackers dropping into the shallow zone can rob the hitch route, so keep an eye on the middle linebacker's depth and lurk positioning before committing to that read. Man coverage with press corners shuts this play down quickly, so if you see man alignment pre-snap, consider audibling to a man beater instead.
Usage Tips
Snap this on third and short to medium since the routes are designed to convert quickly against zone drops.
Pre-snap, identify if the corners are playing off or bailing into zone, this play loses value against tight man coverage without a hot route adjustment.
Hot route the shallow flat receiver into a speed out if you see Cover 2 corners sitting on the hitch.
Use this play after running Y Stick or Dragon Spacing so the defense respects the quick underneath game and opens up the corner route for a bigger gain.
Work the ball to the flat first against Cover 3 to force the underneath defenders to widen, then take the corner route on the backside for a chunk gain if the defense overcommits.
