Introducing the Wingback — The NFL’s New Favorite Position
It’s been a while since wingbacks have had a place in NFL offenses. The position as a whole has been around for some time, but recently they’ve been reserved for run-heavy, option-centric offenses commonly at the lower levels. Up until recently that is.
But what exactly is a wingback?
A wingback’s traditional alignment places them outside a tight end or offensive tackle about a yard off the line of scrimmage. The archetype for this player is essentially a hybrid running back/wide receiver who can inflict damage in a myriad of ways. You’ll oftentimes see them sent in motion at the snap to build momentum and keep opposing defenders on their heels:
In today’s NFL a wingback is less so a positional alignment, and more so an archetype for a player. Half receiver half running back, wingbacks are chess pieces that line up all across the formation and make an impact in both the run and pass game. They demand the attention of opposing defenders, and the league’s smartest offensive minds are finding ingenious ways to utilize their attention-grabbing skills.
At the forefront of this wingback revolution we find Deebo Samuel. Samuel’s dynamic skill set makes him the ideal wingback in a modern offense, and we’ve seen Kyle Shanahan use him as the focal point of the 49ers’ high octane attack. Here’s an example we saw against Chicago in week one:
The intention of the above play call was simple — get the ball in Samuel’s hands and let him make a play. Because he’s an explosive athlete going full speed at the snap, the 49ers’ offensive line can ignore the edge defender (#55) knowing Samuel can beat him to the outside with speed. Meanwhile, the presence of Trey Lance and Elijah Mitchell in the backfield forces the second level defenders to stay home for a split second, and that’s all Samuel needs to get to the edge and pick up an easy six yards.
Of course it’s not just Samuel who’s playing the wingback role in today’s NFL. Another player we’ve seen thrive in this position is Atlanta’s Cordarrelle Patterson.
Patterson spent his early NFL years bouncing from team to team trying to find a consistent role in an offense. He’s always been dynamic with the ball in his hands, but his skills — that are ideal for a modern wingback — didn’t mesh well with traditional offenses. It wasn’t until his first season in Atlanta that we saw him carve out a full time role in an offense. It’s rare to see a player experience a breakout during their age 30 season, but Patterson found a perfect home in Arthur Smith’s offense and has become one of Atlanta’s key cogs:
The end result of the above play is a modest gain, but similar to what we saw from Samuel, Patterson’s pre-snap motion makes it all work. Even though Patterson doesn’t get the ball in this one, the attention demanded when he’s sent in motion opens up a small island’s worth of green grass for the tight end right in the middle of the field:
Creative coaches across the league are coming up with new and exciting ways to feature this position in their offenses. It’s fascinating to see different schemes and personnel groupings utilized to put a wide range of players into this role. In a pass-happy NFL, it’s not surprising to see Samuel and Patterson — both of whom have experience playing as traditional wide receivers — playing as wingbacks in their respective offenses. Yet that doesn’t mean it’s strictly receiver types filling this role in today’s offenses.
More teams are starting to use a wingback as an excuse to get a second, more traditional running back on the field. You’ll see Green Bay put Aaron Jones in this role so he can play alongside A.J. Dillon, and the below clip shows the a creative design the Browns use with Kareem Hunt lined up as a wingback:
Nothing fancy here, just a simple motion to get Hunt into the traditional wingback alignment before the snap. Doing so provides him with advantageous leverage so he can lead block for Nick Chubb and help Cleveland convert the third down.
Depending on scheme and roster construction, different teams are finding different ways to get a wingback involved in their offense. Whether it’s a more traditional back like Hunt, a $73.5 million receiver like Samuel, or a tweener like Patterson, NFL offenses have utilized this new position to get the ball in the hands of their best players.
Over the last few seasons as downfield passing offenses took the league by storm, defenses have shifted their priorities accordingly. It’s now harder than ever to beat defenses over the top which has increased the demand for players who can win closer to the line of scrimmage. The response from many offenses has been the utilization of a wingback, and it’s been fascinating to watch an old-school position find a home in the modern NFL.
