(Photo courtesy: USA TODAY Sports)

The Philadelphia Eagles were an efficient third down team in 2017. One of their staple 3rd and 6-10 yards to go play calls was the “scissors” concept. The Eagles coaching staff called the scissors concept out of multiple formations, with numerous route combinations on the other side of the field to compliment it.

The scissors concept is a 3-man route combination. The outside receiver has a post route. His job is to get inside leverage and force the corner to turn his hips. The number two receiver will run a corner route from a normal slot split. The route will sometimes bend flatter, as the route runner will try and find space between the underneath defender and the over-the-top defender in zone coverage and separate from his defender in man-to-man coverage. The number three receiver will run a flat route. This route can come from a slot receiver, tight end or running back out of the backfield.

The Eagles converted 57 percent of their third downs with this call last season. They averaged 7.5 yards to go when calling one form or another of scissors.

The image below shows the concept. It was taken from an awesome Matt Bowen article.

In bunch formations, the scissors concept is especially lethal against Cover 4 defenses. The post route will have inside leverage on the corner and the safety will take the corner route.

Variations

Hitch-seam

The scissors concept is a five-step play that can take a while to develop, especially if receivers can’t get off press coverage. The Eagles paired the scissors concept with a hitch-seam combination against the Chiefs in Week 2. This combination gives the quarterback a quick game option if the defense decides to blitz. The seam route can convert to a slot fade route against press coverage as well. The video below shows the play:

This video is a good example of how the corner route will flatten against a man coverage look (or possibly a pattern match zone in this case).

H post

The scissors concept works very well against Cover 3 and Cover 4. The cornerback will typically turn and run with the post, opening up a window for the one-on-one matchup in the slot with the corner route.

 

In order to get a good matchup against Cover 2, the Eagles paired it with the H post concept. The H post concept variation the Eagles used got their big bodied tight end, Zach Ertz, with inside leverage on a cornerback. The play is diagrammed below:

In the clip, the Giants play an inverted drop-8 Tampa 2. The flat defender on the side of the scissors concept gets a lot of depth due to the absence of the flat route. The running back chips the defensive end, which delays his release to the flat. Out of this alignment, I would prefer the back free-release or check-release to create a more immediate threat for the flat defender, and not muddy the H post drag route coming from the left side of the field.

At the end of the day, a well-coached defense dropping eight defenders should match and double each of the eligible receivers on this variation of the concept.

Deep hitch

The Eagles would also isolate a single receiver on the backside of trips on a 10-yard hitch route. When defenses rolled safeties and move post snap, having a stationary single receiver backside can give the quarterback an easy alternative if the picture is fuzzy on the scissors side. This variation is diagrammed below:

Full progression with backside dig

If an offensive coordinator wants to guide the quarterback to look at the scissors concept first, he can give him a pure progression read. In this case, complimenting the scissors concept with a backside dig combination gives the quarterback a full-field read that will time up with his footwork. The backside dig combination gives the quarterback an alternative if the defense calls Cover 2. Cover 2 can make the scissors read more difficult, as the corner can pass the post off to the safety and sink into the throwing window of the corner route.

Conclusion

Instead of adding more new plays throughout a season, you may want to consider enhancing your current go-to play calls. Using different formations and switch releases can make the same play look different to a defense. Mixing and matching concepts to the other side of the field can give your quarterback answers if he sees a coverage that can defend the go-to call. This was how the Eagles approached the scissors concept, and it worked well for them in 2017.