Football Library · Routes
Flat
Receiver releases on a NEARLY HORIZONTAL path directly to the sideline at 0-2 yds depth — gains very little depth as he travels laterally (the route is FLAT — that's literally the name). Common RB or slot route paired with a curl/corner/sit over the top to high-low the flat defender. The path may arc slightly as the receiver flattens out from the snap angle, but it should NEVER read as a steep climbing diagonal.
Demo rendered on @X (outside WR) at 2yd depth. Only the route runner and the QB are shown so the break stays the focus; the same route family scales to any depth a play calls for, and concepts that use this route may set a different depth.
How to run it
release flat — outlet for the QB.
Reading it by coverage
How to run the flat against what the defense shows.
- Cover 2:
- release flat — the corner squats; ball arrives before the safety rotates over.
- Cover 3:
- outside the curl/flat defender's drop — gets eyes back fast for the rhythm throw.
- Man:
- release flat — work to outleverage your defender for separation.
Concepts that use this route: Curl-Flat, Slant-Flat, Stick, Snag, Flood, Y-Cross, +1 more