PASS ROUTES
A good passing game is based on the following primary objectives:
1. To flood an area, that is, to have more receivers in a particular area than there are defenders.
2. To get a one-on-one situation, and let the offensive man outmaneuver the defensive man by using various cuts or patterns.
Flooding An Area
Flooding an area is perhaps the easiest and surest way of having a receiver open or in a position to catch the ball. The basic thinking in this particular type of passing game is to assign two or three receivers to a particular area, as illustrated in [Figures 109-111], making it impossible for one or even two defenders to cover the receivers if they stay spread out and run their routes properly.
Figure 109
Figure 110
Figure 111
Offensive Pass Cuts
There are numerous offensive sets a team can employ in order to force the opposition to cover using a man-on-man coverage. When using different sets and formations, I think it is more advisable to teach all of the eligible receivers pass cuts, rather than having them classified under pass patterns which would affect the whole team. As an example, the quarterback could call a formation that would set the left halfback right and split the left end out. He could then call a pass pattern to his right which would be a pattern to flood a particular zone, and at the same time call a particular cut for the left end who will try to outmaneuver the defensive right halfback—who might be forced to cover him alone. [Figures 112-115] illustrate several individual pass cuts, such as, sideline, deep, out, drive, circle, stop, Z-in and Z-out.
Figure 112
Figure 113
Figure 114
Figure 115