In today’s NFL, a team isn’t complete without a versatile slot receiver. These players line up a few yards behind the line of scrimmage and can do virtually anything to help stretch out the defense. They run a variety of routes, have great chemistry with the quarterback and can also serve as an extra blocker on running plays. We’ll take a closer look at what the slot position is, how it differs from a wideout and why it is so vital for teams to have an elite one on their roster.
A slot is an opening or space in a machine or device into which a currency, ticket or other item can be inserted. Typically, slot machines accept cash or, in the case of “ticket-in, ticket-out” machines, paper tickets with barcodes printed on them. When a player activates the machine by pressing a lever or button (either physical or on a touchscreen), reels spin and stop to randomly arrange symbols. Depending on the pay table, a player earns credits if the symbols match a winning combination.
While most modern slot machines don’t have tilt switches, any kind of mechanical malfunction (door switch in the wrong state, reel motor failure, a paper jam) can still be referred to as a “tilt.” This term is also a vestige of electromechanical slot machines that were designed with tilt switches and a mechanism for physically messing with those switches in order to cheat the machine.