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Breakdown
Shallow Cross out of Split Backs Slot with 21 personnel shows a five man route concept built around a deep crossing shallow route. Both backs release from the backfield, one on a shallow drag underneath and the other on an angle route breaking outside to the flat, while the two receivers on the right run a dig and corner combo and the far left receiver runs a deep post. The blocking is max protect with the offensive line picking up the rush while the shallow crosser stretches the field horizontally, making this a classic man beater that uses natural rub picks to shed coverage, with the primary read progressing from the shallow drag to the dig, then to the corner route working outside.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, identify if the defense is showing two high safeties or single high, since single high alignments often mean man coverage underneath that the shallow crosser will exploit. Watch linebacker depth at the snap, if they sink too deep in zone drops the shallow drag and angle route combo will find soft grass in the shorter zones. Key the flow of the middle linebacker after the snap, if he flows hard with the shallow crosser it opens up the dig route running behind him in the vacated zone. Beware of user controlled defenders sitting in shallow zone lurk spots, since a smart user can jump the shallow crosser and undercut the throw for a big hit or interception. Cover 3 with an aggressive underneath robber tends to shut this down fastest, so if you see the defense rotating a safety down into a shallow zone lurk role, abandon the crosser read and go directly to the corner route or deep post instead.
Usage Tips
Check the pre-snap alignment of the linebackers and nickel defender before the snap, since the shallow crosser is designed to run away from man coverage defenders trailing through traffic.
If you see man coverage indicators like tight press corners or a single high safety, immediately key the shallow drag as your first read because the natural rub with the angle route creates instant separation.
Against zone drops, look to the dig route sitting down in the middle voids, then work to the corner route breaking to the sideline if the underneath zone collapses on the crosser.
Use this play on second and medium to third and long situations where the horizontal stretch of the shallow route combined with the deep post can pick up the sticks in one read.
Pair this play with Texas or Curl Flat earlier in a series to condition the defense to expect quick underneath throws, then hit the deep post or corner route off Shallow Cross once safeties start creeping down.
