Colts' Offensive Staples: Levels Concept
The Indianapolis Colts under Frank Reich have consistently had one of the better offenses in the league, despite the team starting four (going on five) different quarterbacks over four years. In this new series, I hope to shed some light on why the Colts' offense has managed to stay efficient despite the turnover.
In the Colts' Offensive Staples series, I will be exploring some of Reich's favorite play calls for this offense. Obviously things change with new quarterbacks, but Reich has stayed pretty consistent on a few of his go-to calls over the years.
Switching over to the pass game for today's article, let's look at a play that has been a staple in the Colts' offense for nearly 25 years; Levels. Levels is a play call that features two receivers on the same side of the formation running an in or dig route at different levels of the defense. Hence, the name of the concept.
In today's Colts' Offensive Staples piece, I dive into the Colts' extensive history with this play and break down some examples of how it is called under Frank Reich.
Peyton Manning Loved Levels in the Early 2000's
When Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning was with the Colts back in the 2000's, levels was one of the main staples of the offense. Both Manning and then-Offensive Coordinator Tom Moore have stated that it was their favorite call back on those early 2000's Colts' teams.
NFL Analyst/Writer Matt Bowen said it best in an article with National Football Post back in 2012:
I mentioned Manning and the Colts offense above because they used to beat defenses with (levels) every Sunday. Keep Ace personnel on the field; remove TE Dallas Clark from the core of the formation as a slot receiver (U) and target WRs Reggie Wayne or Marvin Harrison (X) underneath on the “Smash.”
Frank Reich was briefly a part of those Manning teams, as he was with the team from 2009-2011 as an assistant coach (2009-2010 as QB Coach, 2011 as WR Coach). In those years overlapping with Tom Moore, Reich obviously saw something that he liked in this play design/concept. He has since made it a staple of his own offense with the Colts.
For a more in-depth look at Peyton Manning and Levels, I highly recommend this hyperlinked article by Warren Sharp from back in 2009.
Breakdown of Levels
Levels, at its core, is a fairly simple two-man route design that can be effective against any type of coverage (as long as the QB running it can manipulate defenders with his eyes). The play is typically run out of a 2 X 2 set, and the Colts in particular love to use the tight end as the inside route on this call.
The description of the call can be summarized easily by its name. The play features two players running a similar route, just on different levels of the defense. The two routes are typically in or dig routes, but some variations can include the underneath receiver running a drag route. Here is an example of a call against the Cincinnati Bengals back in 2020:
Tight end Jack Doyle runs a dig route ten yards down the field and wide receiver Marcus Johnson runs a five yard in at the bottom of the screen. The key to this call is the spacing between the two pass catchers. With Johnson aligned outside the numbers, he has plenty of room to work back to the inside to give his quarterback a lane to throw a quick pass.
On this particular play, the Bengals are lined up in man coverage. That means that it is ultimately up to Johnson to cross the face of his defender on his inside route. He is able to do that here and he makes the catch for a gain of five yards.
Situationally, the Colts like to run this concept on first or second down. The ability for this play to pick up decent yards against either man or zone coverage is vital for Reich's offense to stay ahead of the sticks. If the defense is in man, like in the clip above, then it is the job of the outside receiver to win their quick inside route.
If the defense is in zone, then the quarterback can have a bit more fun with it. The quarterback can take the shorter in route once that outside receiver sits in a vacant spot in the zone, which is exactly what Philip Rivers does on this pass to Michael Pittman Jr in 2020:
If the quarterback wants to be a little more aggressive on this call against zone, they can wait out the deeper dig route from the tight end. While this could be a bit dangerous, the quarterback should be able to look off the inside zone linebacker to create a hole at the second level.
That is exactly what happens in this clip from last year. Carson Wentz waits on the deeper route from Jack Doyle and looks off the linebacker over the middle. The linebacker jumps the underneath route, leaving the deeper dig wide open at the second level. In Frank Reich's quick passing game, he loves to attack zone linebackers over the middle. Levels is one way to do that at an efficient rate.
The Bottom Line
Levels is a play call that the Colts have been using for the better part of the last 25 years. Once Frank Reich was hired to be the Head Coach back in 2018, he revitalized the once-staple of this passing attack.
Reich's adds a little variation from the levels concept that Manning and Moore used to run, but it is eerily similar to how the Hall of Fame duo used to deploy it in Indy. It is easy to see Tom Moore's influence on this offense, especially on this play call.
Overall, levels is a safe, early down call to keep the offense ahead of the sticks. In Reich's quick passing attack, this play is vital to the efficiency of the overall offense.
Follow Zach on Twitter @ZachHicks2.
