10 personnel means that there is one running back and four receivers on the field. Offenses like the Air Raid and Spread both often base out of this personnel. Similar to 00 personnel, teams will often look to stretch the field and exploit space with the speed of their receivers. Meanwhile, with a running back in the backfield, the defense also has to be able to defend the run. That puts a stress on how much ground defenders have to cover. While there is no tight end on the field, that doesn’t mean an offense loses the ability to bring in extra blockers. Receivers can line up tight to the formation to add players to the blocking scheme.
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By having receivers on the field, the defense will often counter 10 personnel with smaller, more athletic players themselves. That can create an advantage in the running game — especially if defenses use two deep safeties. Now, the offense can create both size advantages inside for the running game and space advantages on the outside. 10 personnel is a relatively common personnel package because of its run/pass flexibility and the different ways the offense can align.