Football Library · Plays
Flood· 6v6 Flag
Three receivers stretching ONE SIDE of the field at THREE depths — Corner deep (12-18 yds), Out at the second level (7-10 yds), Flat low (0-4 yds, typically the RB to the flood side). All on the SAME SIDE so the cornerback (high-low) and the flat defender are both stretched. Forces a single underneath defender to pick one. Beats Cover 3 and most rotated zones. Erhardt-Perkins / pro-style staple.
Coaching breakdown
Flood Right (6v6): corner @ 14yd (deep), out @ 8yd (mid), flat @ 4yd to the right (low) — three strong-side levels stretch the cornerback and flat defender. go @ 18yd to clear backside; sits @ 5yd as the eligible underneath.
When to call it
Best vs Cover 3 and two-deep zones alike — the same-side, three-level stretch high-lows the corner and puts the curl-flat defender in conflict, which is why the sail/flood beats Cover 2, Tampa 2, and Cover 3. It's contested against quarters (Cover 4), which keeps four defenders over the top.
When not to use
Avoid it vs tight man across the board — the same-side stretch doesn't create the rubs man coverage struggles with — and vs quarters (Cover 4), which keeps four defenders deep to cap the corner. It gives up the backside, so it's not the call when you expect weak-side pressure.
How to adjust for situations
Throw it high-to-low off the flat defender: he jumps the flat, the out is open; he carries the out, the flat hits. The deep corner must hit the numbers, not the hash, and the flat should declare first so the underneath defender commits. The backside route is the man/scramble outlet.
Common mistakes
- Routes stack vertically instead of stretching flat-to-deep — one defender can cover them all.
- Deep route runs at the wrong landmark; should be at the numbers, not the hash.
- Flat releases too late; should be the first route to declare so the underneath defender commits.
Strong / weak against
Strong against
- Cover 2 — The deep sideline 'honey hole' behind the corner and in front of the safety (corner route)
- Tampa 2 — The two deep 'honey holes' outside the hashes — behind the corner, in front of the safety (corner route)
- Cover 3 — The flats — four underneath defenders can't cover all five underneath zones (curl-flat / slant-flat)
Contested
- Cover 0 — Anything that develops slowly — pressure gets home first Better answers: Four Verticals, Mesh, Slant-Flat, Smash
- Cover 1 — Outside vertical shots — the free safety caps them over the top Better answers: Mesh, Drive, Smash, Y-Cross, Four Verticals, Levels
- Cover 4 — Deep shots — four deep defenders make it very hard to win over the top Better answers: Stick, Snag, Slant-Flat, Curl-Flat, Mesh