Anatomy of a Play: Terminology

Understanding the game a little better.

A long time ago, when NFL Films dominated the cable airwaves, I caught the San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl XVI episode. At one point during the show, Joe Montana’s voice emanated from the speakers:

“Brown Right Slot, F Right, Halfback Counter, 14-Ho.”

At the time, hearing a real NFL play call was almost unheard of. And for a nine-year-old kid obsessed with the 49ers, hearing Montana speak an actual play was on par with finding $10 on the ground.

Learning what that play meant and how it was drawn up would become a lifelong white whale. Unfortunately, it was 1989, and Senator Al Gore had yet to bring the power of a 2400 bps modem to the home computer. Asking a local football coach brought more questions than answers.

Too often, learning about professional football offense has a giant hurdle at the start: terminology. Plays often sound like the punchline to a George Carlin joke—a bunch of words that have never been paired together before and said aloud.

The best approach to learning the terminology is just like eating an elephant: take one bite at a time. Head coach Kyle Shanahan’s system is rooted in the original West Coast Offense. Shanahan still has parts of his playbook that use the same terms Bill Walsh used in his own.

Let’s take a look at a play from the 49ers’ Week 3 win over Arizona and break it down. When the quarterback enters the huddle to give the offense the play, it sounds like this: “Wide Right Clamp F Short P14 Jab Z Rider F Shallow”

He starts the play with any pre-snap shifts or motions. This is when you’ll see tight end George Kittle or fullback Kyle Juszczyk start on the ball away from the call and then motion into the formation. The quarterback may begin with a fly or shift—“Y Fly to”—and then give the formation and strength.

Fortunately, formation and strength haven’t changed from your days in Pop Warner football. Shanahan still uses terms such as “I Right,” “North Left,” or “Weak Right.”

Next comes the formation variation, such as “Clamp,” “Nasty,” or “Close,” followed by any additional motion like “Z Left,” “Y Short,” or “H Right.”

The offensive line then keys on the next part of the call, which is either the run hole or the pass protection. Hole numbering is still universal, even at the NFL level; the even holes are to the right, the odd holes are to the left.

Pass protection can be more complex—and probably worthy of an additional post. Shanahan uses everything from drop-back protections such as Jet, Scat, and H-2/3 to a wide array of play-action protections.

Then comes the run or pass concept. On a run, the quarterback might say “18 Zorro” or “16 Power.” On a pass, he may just say “Z Dagger,” or give specific instructions to multiple receivers such as “Y Choice, F Stuck.” Even when only two receivers are tagged, the others must know their assignments automatically.

This is also when the quarterback can add a second play call. After spitting out the first one, he may say, “Can: Toss 18,” and then give the snap count.

If you hear the quarterback shout “can, can,” he’s telling the offense to abort the first play and move to the second.

In the Week 3 contest against the Arizona Cardinals, the 49ers ran the play above for an 18-yard gain.

“Wide” told the F to line up outside the X receiver, who was wide receiver Ricky Pearsall.

“Right” was the strength of the formation, based on the Y receiver’s alignment.

“Clamp” told the Y to line up just off the hip of the tackle.

“F Short” put the F receiver in short motion.

“P14 Jab” established the play-action protection off a jab run look.

While running back Christian McCaffrey didn’t hit the true 4-hole, the hole number still gives the run’s general direction in a zone scheme rather than a fixed landmark.

“Z Rider” told the X and Y receivers the pass concept—a Yankee concept—with a deep post on one side and a deep crossing route on the other. It’s been a staple in Shanahan’s playbook for more than a decade.

“F Shallow” is a new addition to the Rider concept. The crossing route held up and occupied the linebackers, which opened a larger throwing window for quarterback Mac Jones to hit Pearsall for a big gain.

This same play could sound completely different in another system. For example, former quarterback Tom Brady operated in the Erhardt-Perkins offense during his time in New England. That system is built on concept-based play calls rather than fixed routes, allowing Brady more freedom to audible based on coverage.

These are terms I’ve learned over the last few years of film work and, of course, they’ve likely evolved as

Shanahan has continued to shape his offense. But the core idea remains the same: once you clear the

language barrier, the game opens up in an entirely new way.

You can find deeper film breakdowns and more terminology on my X handle.

All images and videos courtesy of NFL.com.

All statistics courtesy of Pro Football Reference unless noted.