Curl–flat
What it is
A curl at about twelve yards with a flat route beneath it, working the curl-flat defender on a five-step rhythm.
Why it matters
Curl-flat is the intermediate version of the same high-low question, and the classic Cover 3 beater: the flat defender in a three-deep shell has to choose between the curl in front of the corner and the flat outside him, and he cannot have both. Against two-high it becomes a different read, which is why the quarterback's pre-snap identification of the shell matters more here than on quick game.
Both sides of it
Running it
Five-step drop. The outside receiver pushes vertically to twelve, sits down in the hole between the corner and the flat defender, and works back to the ball. A back or slot runs the flat at five. Read the curl-flat defender: if he expands to the flat, throw the curl behind him.
Stopping it
The curl-flat defender gets width to the curl first and lets the flat go — the flat is a five-yard completion and the curl is a first down. In Cover 2 the corner squats on the flat and the linebacker walls the curl, which is why the same concept struggles against a two-shell. Re-routing the curl receiver at the line delays the sit-down past the quarterback's rhythm.
Also called
Programs call this curl flat, hook flat or cover 3 beater. The Coach answers to any of them.
Related
This entry is authored, not generated. It is one of 205 in the index that the AI-ssistant Coach retrieves from, and that Film Study tags clips against.