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Quick Reference
Not in any team playbook.
Breakdown
PA Slide out of Strong I H Tight Close is a play-action passing concept that sells the run fake before sliding the offensive line protection to buy the quarterback time. Off the fake, the play sends two receivers on deep crossing routes to the far side, a tight end running a corner route breaking outside, and a fullback releasing on a shallow flat route that mirrors the run action. The primary read progression starts with the flat route as an immediate outlet against blitz pressure, then works to the deep crosses if the play-action freezes the linebackers and safeties, making this an effective zone beater when defenders bite on the run fake.
Defensive Reads
Watch linebacker depth at the snap, if they step up hard on the play fake the deep crossing routes will have room to work against man coverage or shallow zone drops. Identify the coverage shell before the snap, single high safety alignments are vulnerable to the deep crosses stretching the middle of the field, while two high shells can rob the crossers and force you to check down to the flat. Key the flat defender's positioning, if a linebacker or slot defender sits low and wide, the fullback's flat route becomes a low value read and you should progress immediately to the tight end's corner route. Look for user-controlled defenders lurking underneath the crossing routes, since a smart user will sit in the middle of the field to jump the crosses, which should push your eyes to the corner route or flat as safer outlets. Diagnose blitz packages by watching the defensive line and linebacker spacing pre-snap, since a slide protection scheme is vulnerable to overload blitzes from one side and quick pressure can disrupt the deep route timing.
Usage Tips
Run this on early downs like first or second and short to medium yardage to keep the play fake believable and pull linebackers up out of their drops.
Check the safety alignment pre-snap, if you see two deep safeties sitting back the deep crossers may be capped, so lean on the flat route or the tight end corner route instead.
Use the flat route as your blitz-beater since it releases quickly and gives you a safety valve if the protection slide gets beat off the edge.
Hot route the backside receiver into a quick out or drag if you diagnose man coverage, since the deep crossers naturally clear space for a shorter completion underneath.
Pair this with Power O or PA Power O earlier in a series so the defense respects the run fake, then dial up PA Slide to punish linebackers who key run flow too aggressively.
