No Release. No Route.

By Will Cinelli, The Scouting Academy

Each Thursday here on the FirstDown PlayBook Coaches Community website we will feature a breakdown of personnel and technique. This is provided by our friends over at The Scouting Academy who are our go to experts in this field!

Young receivers often struggle to get open vs. Press Man coverage. The reason being is that they lack a “tool kit” of ways to defeat the coverage. There are a number of release techniques that can be used by wideouts to defeat Press Man, and the one we will focus on today is the “stutter” release.

More NFL All 22: Beating Press Coverage With Technique

Here, the No. 2 receiver, Tyler Lockett, stutters his feet, coming to balance. Timing is key here, as he waits for the defensive back to become flat-footed and off-balance before he restarts. He does a good job dipping his inside shoulder as he releases outside.

This aides him with avoiding contact as the defender attempts to jam. You can also see the burst and explosiveness of the player here as he generates separation and gives the quarterback a window to deliver the throw for the touchdown.