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Offensive personnel packages
The two digits are the number of running backs and the number of tight ends on the field. The rest of the skill players are receivers.
00 personnel
No running back, no tight end, and five receivers. It is an empty, pass-only grouping used late in halves and in obvious two-minute situations.
01 personnel
No running back, one tight end, and four receivers. The tight end is usually a move receiver, so the defense stays light and the quarterback throws from empty.
02 personnel
No running back, two tight ends, and three receivers. It is a rare spread-out passing package for teams whose tight ends are genuine receiving threats.
10 personnel
One running back, no tight end, and four receivers. It is a spread passing package that forces the defense into its lightest personnel.
11 personnel
One running back, one tight end, and three receivers. It is the most common grouping in the NFL and the reason nickel is the modern base defense.
12 personnel
One running back, two tight ends, and two receivers. It is balanced enough to run or throw out of the same look.
13 personnel
One running back, three tight ends, and one receiver. It is a heavy run and play-action package, common near the goal line.
20 personnel
Two running backs, no tight end, and three receivers. Splitting a back out keeps the defense light while still carrying two runners.
21 personnel
Two running backs, one tight end, and two receivers. The second back is usually a fullback or a lead blocker.
22 personnel
Two running backs, two tight ends, and one receiver. It is a short-yardage and goal-line grouping.
23 personnel
Two running backs, three tight ends, and no receivers. It is the heaviest package on the field, saved for goal line and short yardage.
Offensive formations
Personnel is who is on the field. The formation is where those players stand. The same personnel group can line up a dozen different ways, and the alignment is what tells the defense — and you — what the offense is threatening. They are listed most common first.
Shotgun — most common in the NFL
The quarterback lines up about five yards behind the center. He sees the whole field before the snap and has more time to throw, which is why the large majority of modern NFL snaps come from here.
Singleback — common in the NFL
One running back behind or beside the quarterback and no fullback. It is the balanced, neutral look that keeps run and pass equally live.
Trips — common in the NFL
Three receivers aligned to the same side. It overloads one half of the field and usually forces the defense to show whether it is in zone or man before the snap.
Twins — common in the NFL
Two receivers to the same side with a tight end away from them. It is the simplest way to create a two-on-two matchup on one edge.
Under center — common in the NFL
The quarterback takes the snap with his hands under the center. It gets the offense downhill faster on runs and sells play action better, but it gives the quarterback a worse pre-snap view and less time against pressure.
Bunch — common in the NFL
Three receivers clustered within a few yards of each other. The tight spacing makes press man nearly impossible and creates natural traffic for defenders to fight through.
Empty — common in the NFL
Nobody in the backfield. All five eligible receivers are split out, which forces the defense to declare its coverage but leaves the quarterback with no extra protector.
Pistol — situational in the NFL
A short shotgun, roughly four yards deep, with the running back directly behind the quarterback instead of beside him. It keeps most of shotgun’s depth while hiding which way the run is going.
Spread — situational in the NFL
Four receivers split two to each side with one back. It stretches the defense sideline to sideline and thins the box. NFL teams use it situationally; college offenses live in it.
Goal line / Jumbo — situational in the NFL
Extra tight ends and linemen with everyone tight to the formation. It is a short-yardage and goal-line look built to win one yard by force.
I-formation — rare in the NFL
The fullback and running back stack in a straight line behind the quarterback. It is a downhill run formation with a lead blocker, and it has almost disappeared from the modern NFL as fullbacks have.
Offset I — rare in the NFL
The same idea as the I-formation with the fullback shifted to one side, which declares the lead blocker’s path and lets him attack an edge faster.
Wildcat — rare in the NFL
A running back or other non-quarterback takes the snap directly, with the quarterback split out wide. It adds an extra blocker to the run game and now appears only in short yardage and gadget packages.
Wing-T — rare in the NFL
Two backs with a wing set just outside the tight end. It is a misdirection run formation built on traps, sweeps, and bootlegs rather than raw talent, and it lives mostly in high school and small-college football.
Flexbone / Triple option — rare in the NFL
A fullback behind the quarterback with two slotbacks on the wings. It is the base triple-option alignment, common at the service academies and essentially extinct in the NFL.
The route tree
Receivers run numbered routes. The tree is the shorthand coaches, broadcasters, and analysts use to describe them.
0 — Hitch
The receiver pushes upfield roughly five yards, stops, and turns back to the quarterback. It is a quick, high-percentage throw.
1 — Flat
A shallow route breaking straight to the sideline. It is common against zone and on quick game concepts.
2 — Slant
A short, hard break inside at an angle. It beats press man and blitzes.
3 — Comeback
The receiver drives deep, then comes back toward the sideline. It is a timing throw against soft corners.
4 — Curl
A deeper hitch. The receiver drives upfield, then hooks back inside into open grass.
5 — Out
A hard break to the sideline at intermediate depth. It is a chain-mover against zone.
6 — Dig / In
A hard break across the middle at intermediate depth. It is the classic answer to two-high coverage.
7 — Corner
A deep break toward the sideline. It attacks the hole behind the corner in Cover 2.
8 — Post
A deep break toward the middle of the field. It is the primary shot play against single-high coverage.
9 — Go
A straight vertical release. It is a pure speed route down the sideline.
Screen
The receiver or back catches the ball behind or near the line of scrimmage with blockers in front. It punishes aggressive upfield pass rushes.
Wheel
A flat route that turns upfield along the sideline. It is most often run by a back or a slot receiver against a linebacker.
Option / Choice
The receiver reads the defender and breaks whichever way the coverage is not. It is usually reserved for a team’s most trusted target.
Offensive schemes
A scheme is the philosophy behind the formations — what the offense is trying to do to a defense every week, and where the volume goes as a result. Most NFL offenses are a blend of several of these rather than a pure version of one. They are listed most common first.
Shanahan wide zone — most common in the NFL
Outside zone running paired with heavy play action and bootlegs off the identical look, plus pre-snap motion to tell the quarterback what the coverage is. It is the most copied system in the league. It produces efficient rushing volume and manufactures open throws for tight ends and receivers on crossers.
West Coast — common in the NFL
A timing-based passing game built on short, high-percentage throws that function as the run game: slants, flats, and crossers, quick releases, and yards after the catch. It lifts reception volume and holds down yards per catch.
Erhardt-Perkins — common in the NFL
A concept-based system in which plays are named rather than numbered, so the same call can be run from any formation or personnel group. It is built to attack whatever the defense does worst that week, which makes individual usage swing hard game to game.
Zone run scheme — common in the NFL
Linemen block areas and flow in the same direction, and the back reads that flow to pick a lane. It favors decisive one-cut runners and works behind lighter, more athletic offensive lines.
Gap / Power run scheme — common in the NFL
Pulling guards, down blocks, and kick-outs that create a numbers advantage at one designated point of attack. It favors bigger, patient backs and produces steady, physical run volume.
Spread option / RPO — common in the NFL
Run-pass options and quarterback run threats that punish a defender for committing either way. It adds designed and scramble rushing yards for quarterbacks and pulls the average throw shorter.
Pro style — common in the NFL
A balanced, multiple system that mixes under-center and shotgun looks with real tight end and occasional fullback usage. It is the default description for offenses that do not commit to one extreme.
Coryell (vertical) — situational in the NFL
A downfield attack organized around deep digs, posts, and corner routes off deeper drops, with routes numbered by depth. It produces bigger plays and more variance: fewer receptions, heavier ones.
Air Raid — rare in the NFL
Four and five receivers, extremely wide splits, and a small menu of pass concepts run constantly and at pace. NFL teams borrow individual concepts such as Mesh and Y-Cross; nobody runs the whole system as a base offense.
Run and shoot — rare in the NFL
Four receivers who adjust their routes on the fly based on what the coverage does, with no tight end. It creates enormous target volume for receivers and survives in the NFL only as a package.
Triple option — rare in the NFL
The quarterback reads unblocked defenders and hands off, keeps, or pitches on the same play. It is a run-first, clock-killing system that does not exist as a base NFL offense.