Playbooks
Franchise Playsheet
Backer Attacker
PlaysheetOffenseOverview
Backer Attacker is a 40 play situational playsheet built on a narrow formation base and deep set variety inside it. Half the book (20 plays) lives in Shotgun across two sets, with Pistol and Singleback splitting the remaining 20 plays evenly at 10 each from a single set apiece. That is a bigger playsheet than 83 percent of the game's 42 offensive franchise playsheets, but the size comes from depth per formation rather than breadth: you get three formations total, so every call you make comes off a look your opponent has already seen. The trade is that you learn those three shells cold and can run the entire concept tree from each one.
Scheme Fit
This playbook wants a quarterback who is comfortable in Shotgun and Pistol with enough mobility to sell Play Action rollouts and keep RPO style reads honest, plus quick enough progression to work Drive and Corner combos against Cover 4. The run game leans on a one cut back with good vision for Outside Zone, Counter and Power Run, a receiving back who can win on Angle routes out of the backfield, and at least one blocking tight end to make the 12 personnel Singleback package real. Pick Backer Attacker if you prefer mastering a small formation tree completely, calling plays off pre snap coverage ID rather than endless formation variety.
Playsheet bonuses
- IUnlocks the playsheet
- II+3Short Route RunningRB & TE
- III+3CatchingRB & TE
- IV+5Pass Block, Pass Block Power, Pass Block FinesseOL
Every play in this playsheet (40 plays)
Pistol Bunch10 plays
Shotgun Doubles Offset10 plays
Shotgun Wing Flex Offset10 plays
Singleback Trio10 plays
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Strengths
- Fifty percent Shotgun concentration across two sets means you can build a full audible package out of one formation and never leave it on a drive, flipping between Flanker Drive style horizontal crossers and Cover 4 Beater verticals without a personnel tell.
- The 10 play Pistol set is the rare piece here and it is the most valuable one: Pistol lets you run Zone Run, Counter and Power Run concepts with a downhill mesh point while keeping Play Action and RPO looks live off identical footwork, so run and pass read the same to a user defender.
- Angle and Drive concepts paired with Motion give you legitimate man beaters without hot routes; motion a receiver across, read the defender's leverage, and you have your coverage ID before the snap on a book that only needs three formation reads.
- Singleback's 10 plays carry the 12 personnel heavy side with Outside Zone and HB Dive, which lets you close games with formation subs (extra blocking TE, power back) rather than switching playbooks or bleeding tendency data.
- Only three formations means near total muscle memory on audibles and pre snap shifts, so you can spend your pre snap clock on protection slides and user defender reads instead of hunting for a play.
Weaknesses
- Three formations and four sets total is thin coverage for a 40 play book, and disciplined opponents will have your entire formation tree memorized by the second quarter.
- At 50 percent Shotgun, once you show gun the defense can commit to nickel and dime personnel, sit in Cover 4 and force you to win with the Cover 4 Beater and Corner calls rather than dictating matchups.
- There is no listed Empty, Strong, Weak or I Form presence, so max protection and true two back power looks are absent; blitz heavy users can bring extra rushers knowing your protections come from spread and Pistol alignments.
- Personnel is limited to 11 and 12, meaning no jumbo or heavy grouping to punish a light box on short yardage, and HB Dive plus Power Run have to do that work behind fewer bodies.
- Play Action and rollout calls are tied to the same handful of sets as your Zone Run and Counter game, so an opponent who stops the run from one look has effectively taken your play action with it.
Usage Tips
Make the two Shotgun sets your primary audible package: use them on every first and second down in neutral field position so Zone Run, Outside Zone and Play Action all come from the same alignment, then let the Motion tags tell you man or zone before the snap.
Save the Pistol set for second and short through third and four, where Counter and Power Run keep a user defender honest and the Play Action off the same mesh point hits the vacated intermediate window.
Go to Singleback in 12 personnel with a lead and under four minutes; Outside Zone and HB Dive from that set are your clock killers, and formation subbing a blocking tight end there avoids showing a new formation late.
On third and long, call the Cover 4 Beater and Corner concepts out of Shotgun and hot route the back to an Angle route as your man beater checkdown, since the book gives you Angle in the same family.
Because you only have three formations, deliberately rotate all three across a series instead of camping in Shotgun, or an opponent will pre snap diagnose every call off personnel alone.
Formations in this playbook
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