With the spread offense so prevalent at the lower levels and teams throwing the ball more than 50 times a game, running backs are coming into the NFL with more developed receiving skill sets than ever before. This has led to NFL teams becoming more interested in finding running backs that can have an impact in the passing game. Today, we look at five ways NFL teams used their backs in the passing game during the 2018 season.

Fly Sweep Boot

The offense shifts from a pistol full house set to a 2x2,12 personnel formation. The right flanker goes in fly motion.  At the snap, the offensive line fakes outside zone and the QB boots away, faking a handoff to the flanker. The RB releases to the flat with speed to out-leverage the corner as he bumps inside to match the flanker’s motion. The QB reads from the flat to the cross by the backside tight end.

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The Bears execute as intended and hit Tarik Cohen in the flat for a 6-yard gain.

Wheel

The offense lines up in empty with the RB split out wide to the right. The RB motions into an offset position beside the QB. The isolated X runs a post from a tight split to clear out the weak side of the formation. On the three-receiver side, the No. 1 receiver runs a pivot, the No. 2 receiver runs a dig and the No. 3 receiver bubbles.  The QB picks his best matchup with the defense in Cover 1.

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The defense plays a corner versus the X and a safety over the RB. As the RB motions to the backfield, the safety travels with him. This tells the QB it’s man coverage.  At the snap, the QB holds the FS in the middle of the field before throwing a beautiful ball down the sideline to Tarik Cohen for a 23-yard gain.

Whip

The offense lines up in a 3x1 formation with the back offset to the weak side. With the offense in the red zone, the defense runs a variation of Cover 2-Man. The isolated split out tight end runs a dig, the No. 1 receiver to the trips side runs a fade, the No. 2 receiver runs a whip and the No. 3 receiver runs a post. The RB runs a whip route versus the Will linebacker. With man-to-man coverage underneath, the QB knows he needs to attack his best matchup.

Christian McCaffrey wins outside leverage on the linebacker and the QB hits him with an accurate pass for a gain of 6 yards.

Option

The offense lines up in a 3x1 set with the TE tight to the formation, off the line of scrimmage with the back offset to the weak side. The pass concept is Four Verticals, with the RB free releasing weak to run an option route against the Will linebacker.  The RB accelerates at the linebacker to threaten him vertically while reading the LB’s leverage and demeanor. He breaks inside, outside or sits down. The QB also reads the leverage of the Will linebacker and throws to the RB based on what he sees. It’s paramount that the QB and RB are on the same page.

At the snap, the QB reads the drop of the Mike linebacker to make sure he doesn’t move inside, which could disrupt the throw. The RB sees the Will linebacker expand to the flat, so he cuts across his face to the inside. Once the QB recognizes the Mike dropping straight back, he gets his eyes to the Will, sees the same thing the RB sees, and throws an accurate pass for an 8-yard gain.

Corner

The offense comes out in a 3x1 formation with the back offset to the weak side. The isolated X runs a crossing route to clear out the weak side. The No. 1 and No. 2 receivers to the trips side run 5-yard in routes and the No. 3 receiver runs a corner route. The RB releases weak and runs a corner route, breaking at around 10 yards.  With the defense rotating to Cover 1, the QB picks his best matchup.

Austin Ekeler’s speed allows him to beat the Will linebacker in man coverage and Rivers throws a catchable ball for a touchdown just before getting hit.

Although some of the routes take more technical skill than others, I think any offense would benefit from installing one or more of these concepts. Attacking linebackers in space with running backs is a great way to exploit mismatches in the passing game. The more receivers an offense gets into pass routes, the more horizontal and vertical stress they can put on the defense.

Photo Courtesy: USA Today