Bomber

Bomber Plays

• Double Rub
• Bubble Screen

Speed Offense Formations

• Nebula
• Wyvern
• Slingshot
• 4 Wide
• Tsunami
• 4 Left
• Max Spread
• Dynamo
• Bomber

Offensive Playbook

• Balanced Formations
• Power Formations
• Speed Formations
• Offense Image Index

Defensive Playbook

• All Formations
• Defense Image Index

Overview

Bomber is designed to be a slightly more vertically oriented counterpart to formations like 4 Left. Rather than spread the defense out along the line, Bomber clusters the receivers close together, placing an even greater emphasis on screens, and complimentary routes. The clustered receivers also make man defense much more difficult to manage effectively, because there's no telling where each receiver will end up. It also uses the opposite side of the field, which may benefit right handed quarterbacks on rollouts.

Where 4 Left spreads out the receivers and uses a lot of routes that move inwards, like drag routes right over the middle, the closeness of Bomber allows greater balance between routes that work the inside and outside parts of the field. One of my favorite techniques is to use routes that work in pairs, starting together, then breaking apart late when the defense is already stretched thin. Because Bomber is designed to attack downfield, the quarterback has a slightly deeper shotgun than 4 Left or Tsunami. This helps a little against blitzes, but is hardly full-proof. Excellent awareness of the defense is required, and mobile quarterbacks will have a definite advantage in this set. There aren't many quick reads with the wide receivers, so if the defense brings pressure you may need to rely on your tight end to bail out your quarterback.

With no running back, Bomber is a passing only formation. All plays are designed around the four wide receivers working together. The receiver assignments are actually recent modifications to my previous, long standing assignments. I originally placed the top 2 receivers in the forward positions because I had a mostly vertical attack style in mind. Although there are significant vertical elements in most Bomber plays, the most import routes still tend to be underneath routes, so I moved the best receivers to the back, where it is easier to run away from man coverage. These changes were made by analysis of three plays using a scoring system for the importance of each route, and work well for me. In some cases the type of receiver (speed, possession) is more important than overall ability, so your preferences may differ depending on the plays you like best and the teams you play with.

Plays

Double Rub

This may be my favorite play aesthetically. The receivers on the far right run inside, passing almost through the inside receivers running vertically. Each pair of receivers start together, then veer apart to break open.

Bubble Screen

A speed screen play that offers a nice change of pace. It's not the most reliable play, but Bubble Screen is an easy way to get the ball into the hands of a receiver and counter interior blitzes.