Playbooks

Franchise Playsheet

Screen Game

PlaysheetOffense

1Formation

5Sets

27Plays

Overview

The Screen Game is a compact situational playsheet built entirely out of Shotgun. All 27 plays live in one formation spread across 5 sets, and the personnel never gets heavier than 11 (1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WR), with 10 personnel (1 RB, 0 TE, 4 WR) as the spread option. At 27 plays it ranks larger than only 7% of the game's 42 offensive franchise playsheets. That means this is a focused call sheet for a specific job, not a full offense. The job is getting the ball to your back in space with screens like HB Cross Screen and punishing defenses that rush hard and play soft.

The book does more than its name suggests. Its run game covers Trap, Power Run, Outside Zone and Zone Run concepts, so you can attack a light box from the gun without subbing into heavier looks. On the pass side you get Motion and Play Action tags plus Seam, Deep Cross, Crosser and Fade concepts. Those give you vertical and intermediate shots that punish defenders who trigger downhill on the screen and run fakes.

Pick the Screen Game when you want a spread, tempo friendly package that turns an opponent's blitz tendencies against them. You get a single formation identity, so defenses cannot read personnel or alignment to guess screen versus run versus shot play. In exchange you give up under center, heavy and goal line looks, which you will need to pull from another playsheet.

Scheme Fit

The Screen Game wants a receiving back with strong Catching, Elusiveness and Change of Direction, athletic offensive linemen who can climb to the second level on screens and zone runs, and at least one receiver who can win vertically on Seam and Fade concepts. A quarterback with good short accuracy and quick release matters more than a big arm, though enough arm to punish crashing safeties on Deep Cross helps. Choose it if you like a spread, rhythm based game plan that baits blitzes, and pair it with another playsheet for short yardage and goal line.

Playsheet bonuses

IUnlocks the playsheet
II+5Impact Blockall OL
III+3Catching, Break TackleRB/FB
IV+5Catching, Break TackleWR/TE

Every play in this playsheet (27 plays)

Shotgun Doubles Y Off Nasty6 plays

Shotgun Empty Base3 plays

Shotgun Trips TE6 plays

Shotgun Y Trips Wk6 plays

Shotgun Spread6 plays

Find plays by concept, not by formation

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Strengths

Every snap comes out of Shotgun, so screens, traps, zone runs and play action shots all share the same presnap picture, and the defense cannot key formation to predict the call.
Screens like HB Cross Screen pair with Trap and Power Run concepts from the same sets, so an opponent who nano blitzes or brings heat against the gun gets punished by the back in space either way.
The 10 personnel sets spread the field with four receivers, which forces base defenses to show their coverage presnap and thins out the box for the Outside Zone and Zone Run calls.
Motion and Play Action tags inside a pure gun book let you move a receiver to confirm man or zone, then hit Deep Cross or Seam behind linebackers who crashed on the run fake.
The small 27 play size makes the audible package easy to build and learn, so you can play fast, hurry up and stay in rhythm without menu diving.

Weaknesses

With 100% Shotgun and nothing heavier than 11 personnel, there are no under center, heavy or goal line looks, so short yardage and red zone power situations need a different playsheet.
The HB lines up offset in the gun on every play, and a sharp opponent can read which side the back aligns to cue screen and run direction.
At 27 plays, larger than only 7% of franchise offensive playsheets, the book runs thin over a full game, and a defender who studies your tendencies will see the same concepts repeat quickly.
The pass concepts lean on Seam, Deep Cross, Crosser and Fade, which leaves little in the quick game for when a defense sits in soft zone and takes away both the screen and the deep shot.
The screen game depends on linemen getting out in front, so a defense that plays contain and spies the back with a user controlled linebacker can stall the core identity of the book.

Usage Tips

Build your base audible package around the 11 personnel Shotgun sets: one HB screen such as HB Cross Screen, one Trap or Power Run, one Outside Zone and one Play Action shot, so you can check between them without changing the look.

On 2nd and long or 3rd and medium against a blitz heavy opponent, call HB Cross Screen and let the rush run past the play, since this is the situation the book is built for.

Use the 10 personnel Shotgun sets on 1st and 10 to spread the defense out, then check to Zone Run or Outside Zone if the box shows six or fewer defenders.

Once a defense starts cheating linebackers toward your screens and runs, call the Play Action concepts with Seam or Deep Cross on 1st down or 2nd and short to hit the voids behind them.

Send Motion before the snap to diagnose man versus zone, then hot route a Fade or Crosser against man and stick with the screen or run against zone.