3-on-2 passing

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American football drill · Under-10 and up

Two defenders cannot cover three receivers, so somebody is always open, and the whole drill is the quarterback finding out who. It is the simplest read in football and the best first one for a young quarterback, because the answer is always there. The receivers learn to run their routes at full speed when they are not the target, which is the habit that makes the target open.

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Time
15 minutes
Players
6: a quarterback, three receivers and two defenders
Equipment
  • 6 cones
  • 2 or 3 balls
  • Flag belts

Setup

  1. Put the quarterback five yards behind the line of scrimmage, in the middle.
  2. Three receivers on the line: one 11 yards to the left, one in the middle, one 11 yards to the right.
  3. Two defenders five yards off the line, between the middle receiver and each outside receiver.
  4. The left receiver runs a six-yard hitch, the right runs a six-yard out, and the middle runs straight up the seam.
  5. The defenders choose who to cover; the quarterback throws to whoever is left. Rotate receivers to defenders after three reps.

Coaching points

  • Quarterback: before the snap, count the defenders and look at where they stand.
  • Quarterback: after the snap, look at the defenders, not the receivers. Whoever they are not covering is the throw.
  • Receivers: every route at full speed, every time. A receiver who jogs because the ball is going elsewhere is easy to leave.
  • Defenders: no contact, and no flag until the catch. Talk to each other about who you have.

On the run sheet: Count the defenders, find the receiver nobody is on, throw it on time; every receiver runs full speed

Progressions

  1. Let the defenders disguise it: start in one place and move at the snap.
  2. Make it 4 on 3 with a second middle receiver, which is closer to 5v5 flag.
  3. Add a rusher from seven yards, so the read has to be quick.

How it runs

Three receivers line up across the field and two defenders stand between them. On the snap the left receiver runs a hitch, the right receiver runs an out, and the middle receiver runs straight up the seam. The defenders can only take two of those. In the animation the left defender jumps the hitch and the right defender goes with the out, which leaves the middle of the field empty, and the quarterback throws to the receiver running up the seam, about twelve yards downfield.

Each rep the defenders can choose differently, and the quarterback has to read it again. Keep it non-contact and stop the rep as soon as the ball is caught or a flag is pulled.

Why it works

Reading a defence sounds advanced. Counting to two does not. A young quarterback who has seen, over and over, that the open receiver is the one the defenders are not near has learned the basis of every read they will make later. The drill also keeps everybody honest: receivers who are not the target still have to run hard, because the defenders are reading them too.

The mistakes to watch for

Quarterbacks who decide where to throw before the snap and throw there anyway. Receivers who slow down once they see the ball going somewhere else. And defenders who both cover the same receiver, which makes the read too easy.

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