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Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

One of the biggest trends is the use of the jet sweep.

It asks a receiver—usually a smaller, quicker guy from the slot—to motion across the formation from one side to the other. It's like an end-around or reverse, but instead of the receiver motioning behind the running back in the backfield, he runs parallel to the line of scrimmage. The ball is snapped before the receiver reaches the quarterback, and the receiver is given the ball in stride to try to outrun defenders to the edge.

The jet sweep itself isn't new; it's been around for a while and has been used more frequently to get the ball in the hands of speedy receivers. However, a development we have seen over the last few years is faking the jet sweep.

Teams such as the Chiefs with Tyreek Hill and the Rams with Tavon Austin fake the jet sweep multiple times each game before handing the ball off to their running back on one of their base runs plays in the opposite direction.

What this motion, sometimes referred to as "ghost motion," does to a defense has been greatly beneficial to offenses that use it regularly. The linebackers on the second level and the back-side defensive end are often frozen for an extra second as they read the jet-sweep fake to make sure the receiver doesn't get the ball. That allows the offensive line extra time to secure the defensive linemen and work up to their spots to reach the second-level defenders.

The results speak for themselves.

It's no coincidence the two teams that fake the jet sweep most often, the Chiefs and Rams, both have a top-five rusher. Kareem Hunt's fantastic start to life in the NFL has been aided by this schematic wrinkle, while it has also contributed to Todd Gurley's resurgence this year.

Other teams are starting to catch on. Almost every team with a speedy slot receiver has tried it in an effort to further their running game. The Saints have used Ted Ginn Jr. and Brandin Cooks to fake the jet sweep; the Redskins have deployed Jamison Crowder in similar fashion over the past few weeks; as have the Lions with Golden Tate.

It's quickly replacing the fake end-around, or orbit motion, which sends the receiver behind the running back, giving the linebackers more time to react and chase down the receiver should he get the ball. The jet sweep happens quicker and thus is more of a threat to the linebackers at the second level.

While the rest of the league begins to catch up and install the jet sweep and the jet-sweep motion, the Rams and Chiefs have already started to incorporate the next progression into their offense.

As defenses catch on and begin to adjust, Sean McVay and Andy Reid have begun to run play-action passes and screens off the jet-sweep fake. Instead of handing the ball off, we've seen the quarterbacks execute a play-action fake while the jet-sweep receiver turns his motion into a wheel route and bursts down the sideline. The Rams even had Gurley fake his run and burst up the seam on one jet-sweep fake earlier this year.

Similarly, the sweep can be turned into a quick screen. As defenses begin to ignore the jet-sweep fake and overpursue the front side of the run, offenses can leak out a tight end and/or a tackle from the back side to block on a screen pass. There have also been times where they use the jet-sweep motion to draw a defense to the back side, only to throw a screen to the running back on the opposite side.

It's taking backfield action to the next level of deception, and offenses around the league are benefiting. The offense only needs to hand it off on a jet sweep once or twice for the opposing defense to have to respect the threat.

It causes a separation between the first tier of the defense (defensive line) and the second tier (linebackers), which the NFL hasn't figured out how to fully counter yet. Until the league does, expect it to become more and more popular as a backfield distraction that is a pain for linebackers to deal with.

— NFL1000 RB Scout Mark Bullock