What is the Counter concept in 5v5 flag football?
In 5v5 flag football a counter takes one hard step left and runs right, and because nobody may block, the misdirection is carried by routes rather than by a pulling lineman. The back opens away from the run while the slot receiver runs an out to the same side, so two of the five offensive players are selling a direction the ball is never going.
Why Counter works in 5v5
Routes do the lying, because linemen cannot
At eleven players a counter sells its direction with a guard pulling the other way. There is no guard and no pulling in flag, so the deception has to come from where players run. The 5v5 drawing sends the slot on an out away from the run and keeps the backside receiver vertical, which means two of your four non-carriers are working purely on the fiction.
It costs you more than it does at eleven
Two changes of direction take time, and with no blockers the runner spends that time completely exposed behind the line. At eleven a late counter still has bodies in front of it. At five a late counter is a runner alone in his own backfield with defenders arriving, which is why it gains a lot or loses several and rarely just two.
It only pays after the sweep has been established
With five defenders, nobody is far from the ball, so the counter needs genuine over-pursuit rather than a slight lean. That means calling it after the sweep has made them chase, not before. Called cold in the first quarter it is simply a slower run to the same edge.
Misdirection is free
It costs no extra player, no blocking scheme and no rule. The only thing it spends is a defense that has been coached to flow to the football, which is every defense that has been coached at all. That makes counter one of the highest-return calls available to a team with no other advantages.
It is paid for by the runs you already called
A counter against a defense that has never seen your sweep gains nothing, because nobody is flowing anywhere yet. Against one that has been chasing it all afternoon it gains the whole backside. The play is a withdrawal from an account the rest of the run game has been paying into.
It punishes the defense's best players first
The defenders who react hardest to the first step are the aggressive ones, which are usually the fastest and the most disciplined about pursuit. A counter turns their strongest instinct against them, and it removes them from the play more completely than any block could.
How to read it
- 1
Sell the first step
One hard step in the wrong direction, with the eyes and shoulders going too. A counter run at three quarter speed in the first direction fools nobody and has simply taken the runner further from where he is going.
- 2
Plant and go, do not drift
The change of direction has to be a plant rather than a curve. A rounded counter gives the defense the time it needs to stop and redirect, which is exactly what the concept is trying to deny them.
- 3
Read the backside defender
The man who did not chase is the whole play. If he stayed home the runner cuts up inside him; if he flowed with everyone else there is nothing between the runner and the sideline.
- 4
Get north once the edge is turned
The counter has already spent its deception. Continuing to run sideways after the redirect just lets the pursuit it beat catch back up.
What changes in 5v5
Routes do the lying, because linemen cannot
At eleven players a counter sells its direction with a guard pulling the other way. There is no guard and no pulling in flag, so the deception has to come from where players run. The 5v5 drawing sends the slot on an out away from the run and keeps the backside receiver vertical, which means two of your four non-carriers are working purely on the fiction.
It costs you more than it does at eleven
Two changes of direction take time, and with no blockers the runner spends that time completely exposed behind the line. At eleven a late counter still has bodies in front of it. At five a late counter is a runner alone in his own backfield with defenders arriving, which is why it gains a lot or loses several and rarely just two.
It only pays after the sweep has been established
With five defenders, nobody is far from the ball, so the counter needs genuine over-pursuit rather than a slight lean. That means calling it after the sweep has made them chase, not before. Called cold in the first quarter it is simply a slower run to the same edge.
When not to call Counter
It does not work as an opener
Called first, before anything has established flow, a counter is a slower version of the run it is countering. It needs the defense to have a habit before it can punish one.
It is slow, and slow is expensive when nobody blocks
Two changes of direction take time, and against a disciplined defense that stays home the play arrives late with the runner still behind the line. It gains a lot or loses several, rarely two.
Take it to your team
Draw your plays in the free play designer, collect them in the playbook maker, and print wristband play cards so every player knows them come Saturday.
Open Counter in the designer
Opens this exact 5v5 diagram. Move anybody, change the depths, then save it to your playbook.
Open this play in the designerRelated questions
Is counter the same as counter trey in flag football?
When should I call counter in 5v5?
What makes a counter fail at five a side?
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Coach Ray Carroll
Coaches 5v5 flag football from kindergarten through 7th grade in San Mateo and San Carlos, California, and built RC Football to design, teach and print the plays his own teams run.