Introduction to the Dairy Raid Offense - Base Passing Concepts
This piece was written last February for Badger Notes as part of my effort to introduce the Dairy Raid Offense to a wider offense. I put a lot of effort into these pieces and the accompanying videos, and since they are no longer online I’d decided to re-upload them here. The Dairy Raid Offense is gone, but it’s important to look to the past as we shape the future. Enjoy!
Welcome everyone Dairy Raid classroom as we kickoff our Introduction to the Dairy Raid series.
In Chapter 1 today, my goal is to introduce four standard Air Raid passing concepts that are staples in offenses all over the country (and the world). We'll start by discussing basic concepts such as the mesh, cross, spot, and verts. I'll introduce these concept and break down route progressions and footwork. Together we will install the play as if you were in mini camp with me. Then with this basic understanding fresh in your mind we'll dive into an example of how Phil Longo runs a similar version at Wisconsin. We'll draw it up on the chalkboard and watch film clips of the plays in use so you can see both the right and wrong ways to execute the Air Raid.
Let's begin with the Mesh concept.
The Air Raid is all about putting stress on the defense and making them defend the entire field. The mesh is a perfect example of a play that puts a horizontal stress on the defense. It works equally against both man and zone coverage because it creates open grass in different ways for all coverages.
In our system the mesh happens between our two slot receivers, Y (strong slot) and H (weak slot). From a standard 2x2 set the Y sets the top of the mesh at about 5 yards directly over the football. Once he reaches the apex of his cross he will flatten out. Our H is working to get as tight as he can underneath the Y where they mesh at the middle of the field. This creates a natural pick vs. Man coverage because at least one of the trailing defenders will have to drift behind or they will run into each other.
Versus Zone the stress is caused by as soon as the meshers cross each other they are looking to sit down in the first open zone. So wherever the linebackers drop in their zones they can't cover the whole middle of the field. There is always be a hole. To help aid in creating this stress we have our two outside receivers running vertical routes (Z burst corner, X fade) to ensure there is not top down help. Our running back is also running a bubble to the strong side to create more horizontal stress.
Like all Air Raid passing concepts the QB will go through his progression reading open grass. Is his first receiver open? Throw it? No? Move on to #2 and on down the line. That's the beauty of the Air Raid. There is no thinking just a reaction.
Moving on to the Cross concept
With the Cross we are now looking to create a high/low stress. Building off of the mesh we want to expand the zones occupied by the LB's and now put receivers both under them and over. So let's build the progression and really put the defense in conflict.
We actually start our progression with the weakside wide receiver (X). As our QB takes his drop he will peak at the X. If the X beats his man off the line with his fade release we will look to hit him with a hole shot. If not our eyes move back inside to our H who is running a 3-5 yard choice route. He wants to run away from leverage so if he's uncovered he will just sit down. If he has inside leverage he will break outside, which we will likely see. And it's this defender we will look to put into conflict as our Y runs his crossing route.
The Y will look to hit a landmark at about 10 yards by the time he leaves the box. He will do this by working under the first defender he encounters (usually a nickel) and over the next (the inside linebacker). Then as he approaches 10 yards he will flatten out toward the sideline. Now the LB inside the H will have a choice. Work downhill to the choice and leave the cross open, or sag on the cross and leave an easy pitch & catch to the H all day. Whatever he picks is wrong.
And to make sure he doesn't get any help from the safeties our Z will be running a deep Dig route to hold the safeties or give a home run shot. The F is once again running a bubble to create more horizontal stress and to be an outlet if all else is covered.
Introducing the Triangle Read with the Spot Concept
A triangle read is when we put three receivers in relative close proximity creating both a vertical and a horizontal threat to the defense. Usually there is a defender inside the triangle and he will be the trigger man to help us determine if we are going North/South or East/West.
Our Spot Concept starts with our Z receiver. On the snap he will run a three yard slant route. If his defender runs with him he will keep running. If he doesn't feel the defender running with him he will look to sit down as soon as he leaves the wake of the vertical release of the Y. The Y is running a deep corner route which can be adjusted to an out route based on the leverage of the safety. Our trusty F is once again running another bubble but this time to create the bottom of the triangle.
The progression is simple. If the Triangle defender is work for depth then we are progressing Z to F since it will be very difficult for him to attack the ball East/West. If he works for width we will work Y to Z to F. The adjustable corner/dig allows the QB to throw the Y open if he has the leverage. If he doesn't then our slant/spot should be wide open. If not we can dump it out to the F who should have leverage on the flat defender.
On the backside of the play we have a couple routes for both hot reads and man coverage beaters. Our H is running a seam and will be our hot read if we get pressure from the backside. Our X is running a deep out route which allows our QB to throw the ball hard and low to the sideline for a low risk release option.
By creating both horizontal and vertical stresses on the same play we put the defense in a can't win scenario. As long as we execute and win our battles we have an answer for all coverages.
Now let's take our deep shot.
With a vertical concept we are looking to take the idea of defending the whole field to the max. It might seem simple to just tell everyone to "go deep", but there is a lot more to the play than that.
Now there is some truth to that statement however because at the start of the play that's what our four receivers are doing. They are taking off vertically but instead of just aiming for the end zone they are working toward landmarks. Our outside receivers are looking to stack the numbers and work toward a landmark about 10 yards downfield. Our slots are working toward the hashmarks with their landmarks being 10-15 yards downfield.
If their defender is in their hip pocket they are just going to take off. If the defender is still over the top of them (capping them) by the time they get to their landmarks we want our receivers to break down. Our outside receivers will run curls or comebacks and come downhill to the QB or sideline depending on leverage. Our Y will curl up on the hash while our H will look to split the defense and run down the post.
As for the QB progression it is as simple as working from outside across the field starting at the weakest cornerback or the best outside matchup. If he can't find another open going through his four receivers our F will be checkdown over the middle of the field and working to the sideline. But if the offensive line can give him enough time there is going to be open space. Even the best defenses will have difficult covering the entire field from sideline to sideline and from the line of scrimmage to the end zone.
So there you have it. Four basic Air Raid concepts that are staples of the Dairy Raid offense. If you are more of a video learner click on the video below where I have drawn up the concepts both in my system and variations that you will see on Saturdays from the Badgers. I've also included clips of the plays being ran in games this season so now that you know how it's supposed to work you can see did the Badgers execute?