Sports
Why the NFL is so obsessed with the Wing T offense
No run, no fun. In 2024, the best offenses in the league run the ball. This statement might sound like it’s coming from the ’90s, but with how defenses are prioritizing stopping explosive pass plays, living through the air is a hard way to live. However, the best offenses aren’t just lining up in an I-formation and calling iso and power over and over again. To be a good running team, you have to be creative and deceptive. Offensive coaches are looking for ideas anywhere, and multiple teams have turned to one of the original offensive systems: the Wing T.
The Wing T is a three-back offense. The original formation has two backs in the backfield and a wing lined up outside and behind the tight end. The wing serves as a third back who goes in motion to receive handoffs or fake like he’s getting a handoff. Though the formation and plays can vary from iteration to iteration, the core principles are deception, sleight of hand and speed. The goal is to displace linebackers with motions and fakes and quickly hit the defense with runs away from the fake.
The Arizona Cardinals are bludgeoning defenses with an offense that resembles a single-wing offense, which is the original offense the Wing T evolved from. Mike McDaniels’ Miami Dolphins offense ranked first in yards per carry (5.1) last season by integrating Wing T principles, ideas and plays. Matt LaFleur won games with his starting quarterback hurt by transforming the Green Bay Packers offense into a modern Wing T offense. Some of the league’s top play callers — Andy Reid, Sean McVay, Ben Johnson, and Kyle Shanahan — have sprinkled Wing T concepts into their play sheets for years. Today, we’re seeing Wing T plays all over the league.
Why is the Wing T making its way into the NFL?
The prominence of the jet sweep — in which a receiver goes into a motion and gets a direct handoff running to the perimeter — comes directly from the Wing T. During Jim Harbaugh’s first stint as the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers, he started running wide receivers fly sweeps for Ted Ginn Jr. Harbaugh credited Sacred Heart Prep’s Pete Lavorato with teaching him the fly sweep after Harbaugh attended a clinic on Lavorato’s offense, a version of the Wing T.
A Jet(tas) sweep for the lead!@JJettas2 | @Vikings
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📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/rvQRHI7Cq9 pic.twitter.com/kf2HLyMupQ— NFL (@NFL) October 2, 2022
Now, every team has the jet sweep in its offense. The play keeps defensive ends honest. Faking the jet sweep to receivers, then handing off the ball or tossing it to running backs displaces linebackers. The misdirection gets them looking and leaning the wrong way, which is one of the core features of every Wing T offense.
16th TD on the season for Raheem Mostert!
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📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/xvCjbLUIcN pic.twitter.com/YYOK0FZFNt— NFL (@NFL) December 3, 2023
Wide receivers as runners and run game diversity
Dan Casey built his reputation by posting interesting plays on social media. He now consults for NFL teams, helping them add new ideas to their playbooks.
“There’s just a greater need for run game diversity and being able to get multiple guys touches,” Casey explained. “I think the days of being able to just line up in single back and run wide zone are over. Defenses just gobble that up.”
Casey talked about what Liam Coen is doing with their two-back sets, using Rachaad White and Bucky Irving at the same time. Neither back specializes in lead blocking, so you can’t just have one of them block for the other one. You have to find ways to stress defenses to create an advantage for whoever the ball carrier is. Wing T plays help you do that.
Shanahan started using Deebo Samuel as a runner years ago in the 49ers’ Deadpool package. That has stressed defenses because they have to treat him as a wide receiver and trot out their nickel (five defensive backs) personnel when Samuel is part of a three-receiver set, but San Francisco can still run two-back plays when he’s on the field.
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“You just switch some guys up, and whatever runs look good versus fronts you are going against,” Shanahan explained.
“In just the conversations I’ve had with a lot of NFL guys … obviously, you have your running back, and then every team wants a receiver that they can hand the ball off to. Not just on sweeps, but on inside handoffs as well,” Casey said.
In the above clip, the Detroit Lions are running a direct rip-off out of the Wing T playbook: a staple concept called a “Sally” variant. On the play, there needs to be an outside-run-fake element with a handoff to a player in front of the quarterback, typically with pulling linemen either trap blocking or lead blocking. The Lions ran it with Jared Goff faking a pitch to the running back before handing it off to receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in front of him, with the center and tackle lead blocking for him. Sally is the most prominent Wing T play you’ll see across the NFL on Sundays.
Giving defenses new looks and adding layers to plays
“Defenses have gotten really good at fitting this, the basic version of run plays,” Casey said. “So you do have to change the math or change the fit somehow. The nice thing about these Wing T concepts is there’s not a paradigm for defenses fitting it. It’s not like they’re seeing it every day in practice. So when I talk to NFL guys, a lot of times they’re like, ‘I just kind of need something that people haven’t really seen much of because once they see it and rep it, they can kind of squash it.’”
Of course, running a basic inside zone play will still work if you block it right, but defenses have seen it so many times that they can instinctually play it and get to the right places. Whether they can hold their ground, shed blocks and make tackles is a different story, but just getting defenses to second-guess where they need to be or where their run fit is gives the offense an advantage. That’s where these Wing T backfield actions come into play.
In this clip, the Kansas City Chiefs are simply running an inside zone play. Still, before Patrick Mahomes handed off the ball to the running back, he turned his back to the defense to fake a reverse to a wide receiver before completing his spin and getting back in position to hand off the ball to the running back. The Chiefs also added another layer of deception because typically teams run inside zone away from the side that the back is offset to. So if the back is lined up to the quarterback’s left, they’d run zone right. In the clip, the running back was lined up to Mahomes’ left but ran inside zone left.
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Another core tenant of the Wing T is the quarterback turning his back to the defense to execute fakes. Many Wing T playbooks have a whole series of plays called “spinner,” which involve the quarterback spinning to hide the ball from the defense. With the increase in shotgun formations across the league, quarterbacks will usually hand off the ball with the ball carrier coming in front of them. By integrating spinner concepts into the shotgun, they get the element of deception back even from the gun.
Taking it to the next level
The greatest lesson to take from Wing T offense isn’t the play but the sequencing. With every play, there’s a counter and another counter. If a defense overplays the outside, it can fake an outside play and hit you inside, or vice versa. McVay took the league by storm when he was first hired by the Los Angeles Rams, building his playbook with this philosophy in mind. With the Dolphins, McDaniel has taken the deception and layering element to another level. The footwork and sleight-of-hand ball fakes Tua Tagovailoa is executing are an elevation of the techniques the Wing T has established.
Week 10, 12:09 remaining in the first quarter, first-and-10
On this play, Tagovailoa first faked an inside handoff to the running back to his left before tossing the ball to receiver Malik Washington on a reverse. The ingenious part of this play is having the center and guard fake like they are down-blocking before leaking out to the perimeter to block for Washington.
Tagovailoa reversed out to fake counter to the left. The right guard and tight end also false-pulled to the left to get the linebackers to step in that direction. Tagovailoa hid the ball after his pivot before tossing the ball to Washington. He did a good job of barely moving his body while facing the sideline so the defense wouldn’t suspect he had the ball and made as little movement toward Washington as possible.
Rookie Malik Washington takes the ball 18 yards to the house! @MiamiDolphins get the scoring started.
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📱: Stream on #NFLPlus and ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/zv7bB0aGDx— NFL (@NFL) November 12, 2024
This play is directly from a Wing T playbook but with some tweaks.
The quarterback turning his back to the defense and all the fake possibilities adds more layers of deception when teams want to pass the ball, leading to better play action.
Here, the Packers’ Malik Willis turned his back to the defense to fake an outside handoff before throwing a screen.
In today’s age of easy access to information, offenses are looking everywhere for inspiration and ways to throw defenses off. Naturally, they’ve returned to football’s origins for inspiration because the principles of the offense never go out of vogue. Deception and sequencing with speed are a lethal combination. Wing T offenses weaponized those elements near perfection decades ago. Modern offenses are taking notes and adding their own spin to them.
(Top photo of Tua Tagovailoa: Bryan Bennett / Getty Images)
Sports
Amanda Anisimova defends right to avoid ‘clickbait’ questions about US politics at Australian Open
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American tennis star Amanda Anisimova called out a reporter at the Australian Open for asking “clickbait” questions about representing the United States under the Trump administration, saying it was her “right” not to speak on political matters.
Speaking to reporters after her fourth-round victory over Wang Xinyu, Anisimova was asked about how she is handling the “discourse” that has surrounded her after a reporter asked her and several American tennis players about their thoughts on representing the Stars and Stripes.
Amanda Anisimova of the U.S. is congratulated by Katerina Siniakova, right, of the Czech Republic following their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)
“I feel like the internet is – it’s tough. It comes with the job, which is something I’ve learned to get used to,” she said, adding that there are days “where it bothers me a little bit.”
Anisimova, a finalist at the 2025 U.S. Open and Wimbledon, later addressed the incident involving the reporter, who OutKick reported was freelance journalist Owen Lewis.
“In my other press conference, the fact that I didn’t want to answer a question that was obviously intended for just like a headline and clickbait, that was my right. It had nothing to do with my political views or anything like that.”
Anisimova was initially asked at an earlier press conference how it felt to “play under the American flag right now.”
“I was born in America. So, I’m always proud to represent my country,” the New Jersey native said. “A lot of us are doing really well, and it’s great to see a lot of great athletes on the women’s side and men’s side. I feel like we’re all doing a great job representing ourselves.”
Amanda Anisimova of the United States in action against Simona Waltert of Switzerland in the first round on Day 2 of the 2026 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Jan. 19, 2026 in Melbourne, Australia. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)
TENNIS STAR AMANDA ANISIMOVA DISMISSES REPORTER’S CYNICAL QUESTION ABOUT US: ‘I DON’T THINK THAT’S RELEVANT’
But the reporter later clarified his question, asking “in the context of the last year of everything that’s been happening in the U.S., does that complicate that feeling at all?”
Anisimova fired back, “I don’t think that’s relevant.”
Speaking to reporters Monday, she said it was wrong for fans to assume her politics based on that response, saying, “The fact that people assume that they know my stance on certain important topics is just wrong. It’s not factual. It’s tough, but I’ve learned to get used to it.”
Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open tennis championships in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)
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Many social media users, including former American tennis stars John Isner and Tennys Sandgren, came to her defense and criticized the reporter’s line of questioning, which other American tennis players, including Taylor Fritz, were asked.
Fox News Digital’s Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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Shedeur Sanders made the Pro Bowl.
Let that sink in for a minute.
His father, Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders, made eight Pro Bowls during his 14-year NFL career. But he wasn’t selected until his third season.
The younger Sanders just finished his rookie season … for the 5-12 Cleveland Browns.
The former Colorado quarterback was considered a potential high first-round pick going into the 2025 draft, but he slipped down to the fifth round, where he was selected by Cleveland at No. 144 overall.
Sanders began the season as a third-stringer but eventually became the Browns’ QB1. In eight games played, including seven as a starter, Sanders completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards with seven touchdowns, 10 interceptions and a passer rating of 68.1. He also rushed for one touchdown.
In other words, he wasn’t exactly an elite NFL quarterback.
Yet, Sanders is headed to the Bay Area to take part in the 2026 Pro Bowl Games on Feb. 3. He was named as the replacement for New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who is unable to participate because his team is playing the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8.
Sanders is the first Browns quarterback to make the Pro Bowl since Derek Anderson in 2008 and the first rookie quarterback to make it since Maye last year.
Sanders may be the most unexpected selection since then-Baltimore Ravens backup Tyler Huntley. Huntley made the cut after the 2022 season despite playing in only six games, starting in four, and throwing for 658 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions.
How did this happen? Here’s what we know.
Pro Bowl selections are determined in equal parts by fan, player and coach voting. When the results were announced in late December, the three quarterbacks selected to represent the AFC were Maye, Buffalo’s Josh Allen and the Chargers’ Justin Herbert.
Sanders was not among the first four alternates at quarterback in the AFC.
Some of the AFC’s top quarterbacks — including Denver’s Bo Nix, Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes and Indianapolis’ Daniel Jones — suffered season-ending injuries.
Players are not required to take part in the Pro Bowl festivities. Several other AFC quarterbacks — possibly including Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, Houston’s C.J. Stroud, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson, Pittsburgh’s Aaron Rodgers, Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow and Tennessee rookie Cam Ward — may have turned down Pro Bowl invites for Sanders to have gotten the nod.
All that aside, not many people ever get to play quarterback in the NFL and even fewer can say they made the Pro Bowl. Sanders seems most appreciative of the honor.
“Thank you God. I’m beyond excited and extremely grateful for all the love and support from the coaches, players, and fans,” Sanders said in a statement released by the Browns. “This wouldn’t be possible without the support behind me. Still plenty of work to do.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter warns soccer fans against traveling to US for 2026 World Cup under Trump
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Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter says soccer fans should avoid traveling to the United States for the 2026 World Cup this summer.
Blatter’s reasoning? His belief that President Donald Trump’s international aggression and immigration crackdown across the country makes it dangerous for fans traveling overseas.
Blatter cited Mark Pieth, an anti-corruption expert and law professor who oversaw the Independent Governance Committee during FIFA’s reform from 2013-16. Pieth spoke with Swiss outlet Der Bund, where he told soccer fans to, “Stay away from the USA!”
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FIFA President Sepp Blatter gestures during a press conference at the FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland on March 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
“For the fans, there’s only one piece of advice: stay away from the USA!” I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup,” Blatter, 89, tweeted on Monday.
Pieth added in his interview: “You’ll see it better on TV anyway. And upon arrival, fans should expect that if they don’t please the officials, they’ll be put straight on the next flight home. If they’re lucky.”
The United States is set to co-host this year’s World Cup, as Mexico and Canada will be the site for games in the tournament that spans from June 11-July 19. However, after the Round of 16, all remaining matches will be held in the U.S.
Trump’s stance toward Greenland has led to a call to boycott the World Cup this summer by German soccer federation executive Oke Göttlich.
“I really wonder when the time will be to think and talk about this concretely,” Göttlich told Hamburger Morgenpost newspaper about a potential boycott. “For me, that time has definitely come.”
Trump said recently that a “framework of a future deal” with NATO involving Greenland and the Arctic region has been discussed, which could ease tension in that regard.
From left; FIFA President Gianni Infantino takes a selfie with President Donald Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during the draw for the 2026 soccer World Cup at the Kennedy Center in Washington, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Chris Carlson/AP Photo)
“Based upon a very productive meeting that I have had with the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, we have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
There is also the criticism of ICE agents in U.S. cities, specifically Minneapolis, Minnesota, following the deaths of two U.S. citizens as immigration crackdowns continue.
Pieth discussed that factor as well in his interview.
“The country itself is in a state of tremendous turmoil,” he said. “What we’re witnessing domestically — the marginalization of political opponents, the abuses by immigration authorities, and so on — doesn’t exactly entice a fan to travel there.
Pieth likened the States’ “security situation” to Mexico, where drug cartels threaten violence ahead of matches in Guadalajara, Mexico City and Monterrey. Pieth believes the U.S. has become “increasingly authoritarian.”
U.S. President Donald Trump receives the FIFA Peace Prize from Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Draw at John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Dec. 5, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Emilee Chinn/FIFA via Getty Images)
It’s worth noting Blatter was forced out of his post as FIFA president in 2015 following one of the biggest corruption scandals in the sport involving wire fraud, racketeering and money laundering.
Gianni Infantino took over Blatter’s role, and he has had a strong friendship with Trump.
The State Department also told Fox News Digital exclusively that it will launch the FIFA Priority Appointment Schedule System, or FIFA PASS, which will give World Cupp ticket holders the opportunity to access prioritized visa appointments before the tournament begins on June 11.
Prospective visa holders must be able to show that they qualify to obtain a visa and plan to follow the laws in the United States as well as leave the country once the tournament is over on July 19.
Trump spoke about the FIFA Pass in November, saying the Departments of State and Homeland Security had been working “tirelessly” to “ensure that soccer fans from all around the world are properly vetted and able to come to the United States next summer easily.”
In this Sept. 1, 2020 file photo, former FIFA President Sepp Blatter, center, appears in front of the building of the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, in Bern, Switzerland. Former FIFA president Blatter spent a week in an induced coma after having heart surgery in December, his family said on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. (Peter Schneider/Keystone)
“I’ve directed my administration to do everything within the power to make the 2026 World Cup an unprecedented success. I think it’s going to be the greatest, and we are setting records on ticket sales,” Trump said at the time.
Infantino said the organization expected “between 5 and 10 million people coming to America from… all over the world to enjoy the World Cup.”
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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