NFL Route Tree
Here is a view of the basic route tree with the numbering system.
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Matt Bowen/Bleacher Report
Breaking Down the Route Tree
In the NFL, every route (outside of the three-step passing game) breaks at a depth of 12 to 15 yards. Here's a quick breakdown of the routes you need to know in your film study.
Flat (1): A three-step, outside breaking route usually run from inside of the numbers (slot receiver, tight end, running back) with the receiver taking a quick, vertical release and then breaking to the flat. Think of basic combinations where the flat is used: flat-slant, flat-7, flat-stick, etc.
Slant (2): The slant can be run from a three-step drop or a one-step drop (sight adjust to off-coverage/blitz hot read). An inside breaking concept where the receiver will use a quick, vertical stem before breaking at a 45-degree angle to gain leverage versus a defender inside of the numbers. The slant will show up with players such as Calvin Johnson,
Jimmy Graham,
Brandon Marshall,
Larry Fitzgerald, etc., because of their size/length to create leverage on the break.
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John Cordes
Comeback (3): One of the toughest throws for an NFL quarterback to make, the comeback breaks at a depth of 12 to 15 yards with the receiver breaking downhill at a 45-degree angle to the sideline. In order for the comeback to be productive, the receiver must create enough separation within the stem by selling the fade before breaking downhill.
Curl (4): The curl route is the opposite of the comeback, with the wide receiver pushing up the field between a depth of 12 and 15 yards and breaking downhill at a 45-degree angle inside (or to the quarterback). Due to the size we see at the wide receiver position in today’s game, the curl route shows up consistently on Sundays and is often paired with a flat route (curl-flat combo).
Out (5): The out route (or deep out) again breaks between 12 and 15 yards, but the key is the initial split (or stem) of the receiver. This route requires room for the receiver to break and secure the catch while staying in bounds. Because of that, the receiver will either align at the bottom of the numbers or stem to the bottom of the numbers from a plus split to create enough room to complete the catch.
Dig (6): The dig (or square-in) is a deep, inside breaking cut with the receiver (or tight end) pressing up the field, sinking his hips and breaking back to the middle of the field between a depth of 12 and 15 yards. The key for the receiver is creating separation at the top of the stem by pinning the defensive back to the outside. A top concept in the intermediate passing game versus both zone and man coverage that caters to top-tier route-runners such as
A.J. Green.
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Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
Corner (7): The corner route (or old school “flag route”) is a deep, outside breaking cut run up the field at a 45-degree angle toward the sideline. Receivers aligned outside of the numbers will have to take a hard, inside release to run the 7 (create room), and we often see it out of a slot alignment. Paired with the flat route (flat-7), the corner route is one of the top Cover 2 beaters in the NFL and also shows up versus Cover 1 in the red zone to work away from the safety help in the middle of the field.
Post (8): The post is a deep, inside breaking route where the receiver stems up the field at a 45-degree angle to the goal posts. The post can also be run with a “dino” stem (stem to corner, break back to the post) to create more separation by widening the defensive back. One of the top routes in the vertical passing game that is run versus single-high (Cover 1, Cover 3), quarters (Cover 4) and two-deep (Cover 2, Cover 6).
Fade (9): The fade route can be identified with multiple terminology (go, fly, clear-out, etc.). Using a vertical stem, the receiver will work to beat a defender’s cushion in off-man, or win with an outside release in press-man, to stack on top of the defensive back down the field. The “back-shoulder fade” (ball thrown behind the receiver or to the back shoulder versus man coverage) is becoming a top route for today’s NFL offenses, but the straight “go” route is still a weapon when you have speed outside of the numbers, like
DeSean Jackson.
The above is not rocket science. Any good receiver can learn these routes. They are merely versions of college routes. Some do it better than others. If you are as talented a receiver as Amba is, the repetition of running these routes will become second nature. Of course due to the height and speed of the receiver, some can run certain routes better than others and certain receivers can get open in any situation and they are the most valuable of all receivers.
