My Offensive Scheme Breakdown

[jhunt26]

I've decided to do this write-up more for me than anybody else, though I hope it can help newbs with an offense that I have used to much success.

This offense is based on Mike Martz's Vertical Offense while he was with St. Louis (AKA The Greatest Show on Turf), though my offense incorporates more use of the TE and slightly more use of the running game than Martz's variation.

Backfield:

Quarterback – In this offense, the QB must be a pocket-passer*. You want your QB to be one who will be able to throw the deep ball as well as short/crossing routes in order to get the ball to the play makers on offense. He should have great throw power, as well as good throw accuracy. Obviously, the best prototype for this QB would be Kurt Warner.

Recruiting – This is one is obvious, the really only choice is to go after pocket-passer QB. You may also want to go after a taller and bigger QB for aesthetic purposes. He also must have the attributes I stated before as well as good awareness.

*Though this offense is highly dependent on the passing game, the speed at the other positions will allow this offense to be easily converted to a spread/option attack if you happen to recruit a scrambling QB*

Half-Back – Speed and agility are the main attributes here. In order for the pass game to be effective, you need a decent running game. The running game in my offense is based on small agile backs who can turn seemingly small gains into big ones by making people miss. The HB is also going to be an integral part in the passing game, so he should have decent catching abilities. You can also use him in formation subs as the slot end, which I'll get to later.

Recruiting – For this you do have a little more freedom. You can either go with the speed back who can be used as a small receiver like I use, or you can go with a bruiser back that can maybe open up the passing game more. People to go after: HB, FB, ATH. You may also want to try and convert a DB if you have a few years to groom him as he is going to be fast and agile which is what I look for in a HB.

Full-Back – The FB is hardly ever used in this formation as it is mostly run out of the shotgun; however, I use formation subs and use the FB as the Wing Back or F/A/H-Back in Wing formations. Because I use him sparingly, my FB is very specialized to the F/A/H-Back position: Run blocking and receiving.

Recruiting – Because this guy is not used often, you could probably just go after a 1* FB to fill the position. However, if you would like to recruit for the position, the best positions to go after would be FB, TE, HB and maybe a coverage type LB if you have time to groom him.



Receivers:

X – This guy is going to be your speed guy, so speed, acceleration, and release are the most important attributes for him (think Randy Moss). Though he is the fastest receiver, he probably won't get many receptions because if the defense is playing man on him, then there should be help over the top, but he should have a high yards per reception average.

Recruiting – Because the X-receiver is based purely on speed, you can recruit any of the speed positions: WR, CB, ATH, possibly HB. The problem with recruiting HB for this position is that the HB will not be tall enough to play against the CB that will be covering him. The best two positions to recruit for X would be WR and ATH, though.

Z – This guy should also be fast but will more than likely be your 3rd and long option, rather than your deep threat. His main attributes should include route running, release and speed. He should have the most yardage of the two “main” receivers. He will probably lead the team in TDs, too.

Recruiting – The recruiting for this position is similar to X except that you want to recruit more WR than other positions as you need this receiver to be able to get those long first downs.

Slot End/H-Receiver – As stated above, a HB can be used as this receiver if you have nobody else that fits the mold. This receiver should be similar to my description of the HB, except he should have better catching and catch in traffic attributes as he will be going across the middle and need to hold on to the ball.

Recruiting – This position is fun to recruit for as you can go after a lot of different positions: WR, HB, CB, FS, SS, ATH. As long as the player has good agility and decent catching he could be recruited for this position and play well in this offense.

TE/Y – In most other offenses, this guy would be the TE; he should be bigger and be able to receive, too. The Y receiver will need to have good catch in traffic abilities as he will have short routes and routes over the middle, trucking is another attribute that may be helpful.

Recruiting – The best way to recruit for the Y-receiver is to go after big WR or TE that have decent catching as well as strength. There aren't many other positions you should go after on this one as you need somebody who can catch and be able to block some on the running plays.



One thing to remember is that if you do choose to use this offense in a dynasty, you need to make sure that the X, Z, H, Y receivers are filled in correctly in formation subs/depth charts as these receivers work best in their “natural” positions.


This is how a typical 4-Wide and 3-Wide formation would be set up, using my offense:


X SE LT LG C RG RT TE/Y Z X SE LT LG C RG RT TE Z


QB HB QB HB

Any questions? Feel free to discuss and ask away.