Wildcat
The ball snapped straight to the runner, with the quarterback split out as a receiver. There is no exchange to fumble, and the defense has to decide what to do about a quarterback who is no longer playing quarterback.
- The offense1 / 3
The look
The runner lines up where the quarterback usually stands and takes the snap himself. The quarterback is out wide running a route, and the defense has to cover him or give him away.
- vs Cover him2 / 3
The conflict
A defender goes out with the quarterback. The runner now has one fewer defender between him and the yards — the wildcat has taken a man out of the play just by moving a player.
- vs Cover him3 / 3
The numbers
The wildcat's yards come from arithmetic, not deception. Every defender covering the quarterback is one who is not in the middle when the runner gets there.
Why it works
No exchange
The snap goes straight to the player carrying it. Nothing to mishandle, and nothing in the backfield for the defense to read.
It can sidestep the quarterback-run rule
In many leagues the player who takes a direct snap is not treated as the quarterback for that down, so he may run. Confirm it with your league, but it is the common workaround.
It forces a numbers decision
A quarterback split wide still has to be covered, and every answer the defense picks leaves it a man short somewhere.
How it gets run badly
A bad snap
The whole play rests on a snap to a runner several yards back. Rep it until it arrives the same way every time.
Forgetting the pass
If the runner never throws, the defense learns to ignore the quarterback, and the wildcat becomes a dive into an extra defender.
Assuming the rule
Whether the direct-snap runner may cross the line varies by league. Check it before you install the play, not on game day.
Who can run it, and how
All six formats. A direct snap needs a snapper and a runner, which every format has — and in most flag leagues it is how a team gets a legal run from the quarterback's spot, because the player taking the snap is not the quarterback for that down. Check the rule locally.
- In flag5v5 · NFL Flag · 6v6 · 7v7
No blocking. The runner takes the snap and goes; everybody else takes a defender away from the middle — including the quarterback, who is now just another receiver the defense has to cover.
- In tackle9v9 · 11v11
Nine blockers and a direct snap, with the quarterback split wide. In tackle the arithmetic is sharper: the runner gains a blocker's worth of numbers, because the quarterback is no longer standing in the backfield doing nothing.
- 5v5Its offense
- NFL FlagIts offense
- 6v6Its offense
- 7v7Its offense
- 9v9Its offense
- 11v11Its offense
Put Wildcat in your playbook
Draw it in the designer, change the assignments, and save it to your playbook.
Open the designer