Playbooks
Franchise Playsheet
Heavy Sets
PlaysheetOffenseOverview
Heavy Sets is a 30 play franchise situational playsheet built for one job: moving the ball when the field shrinks and the box fills up. Seventy percent of the sheet (21 plays) comes from under center, split across Power I (9 plays), Maryland I (6 plays) and Split T (6 plays). Shotgun supplies the other 9 plays (30%). Every snap comes out of 32, 31 or 23 personnel, so you never have more than one wide receiver on the field. The concept list backs that up. Power, Power Run, Iso, Run Play, QB Sneak and Designed QB Run make up the ground game, and Play Action, Block and Release, Wheel, Deep Cross and Crosser handle the passing.
The real draw is formation rarity. Power I appears in only 4 of the game's 236 playbooks, Maryland I in only 5, and Split T in only 7. Most opponents have almost no reps defending triple back and wishbone style looks, so they struggle to read the gap fits, identify the lead blocker, or recognize the play action tells. Plays like HB Blast, FB Dive and Mesh Sit let you pound the A and B gaps with extra lead blockers, then punish a crashing second level with play action crossers and wheels out of the backfield.
Pick this sheet over a standard goal line package when you want a situational toolkit bigger than most (it is larger than 20% of the game's 42 offensive franchise playsheets) that still fits short yardage, four minute offense and red zone plans. At 30 plays it has enough depth that you are not calling the same two dives on every 3rd and 1. It is a clock killing, physicality first plan that uses unfamiliar formations to stay ahead of the defense.
Scheme Fit
Heavy Sets wants a roster with a powerful fullback who can lead block, a big bodied tight end who blocks first and releases on Block and Release concepts, and a strong interior offensive line that can generate push on Power and Iso. A quarterback with enough size or mobility to finish QB Sneak and Designed QB Run calls, plus a halfback who catches well on Wheel routes, gets the most out of the play action side. It suits a patient, run first franchise player who controls the clock, wins short yardage battles, and would rather grind out drives than trade deep shots.
Playsheet bonuses
- IUnlocks the playsheet
- II+3Carry, Break Tackleall HB & FB
- III+3Run Block, Run Block Finesse, Run Block PowerTE
- IV+7Run Block, Run Block Finesse, Run Block Powerall OL
Coaches who run it: Dan Campbell, Jim Harbaugh, Nick Sirianni, Kevin Stefanski
Every play in this playsheet (30 plays)
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Strengths
- Three rare heavy formations (Power I, Maryland I, Split T) make up 70% of the sheet, and most opponents have barely seen them, so their user defender struggles to pick the right gap before the mesh point
- 3 RB personnel in 32 and 31 gives you an extra lead blocker on Power and Iso, which creates a numbers advantage at the point of attack against standard goal line fronts
- The Play Action, Block and Release and Wheel concepts come out of the same heavy looks as HB Blast and FB Dive, so a defense that crashes the box to stop the run leaves backs and tight ends open in the flat and on crossers
- QB Sneak and Designed QB Run give you a built in answer when the defense overloads the backfield gaps, and an extra hat in the run game on 4th and inches
- The 9 Shotgun plays let you check out of pure heavy looks without leaving heavy personnel, so you can run Mesh Sit and crossers when the defense sells out for the dive
Weaknesses
- Every formation has only one set, so you get no alternate alignments or formation subs within Power I, Maryland I, Split T or Shotgun, and a sharp opponent can learn your four looks within a few drives
- With a maximum of one wide receiver in any personnel group, you cannot spread the field or isolate a receiver against a single corner, which makes this sheet a poor fit for long yardage or two minute situations
- The vertical passing game stops at Deep Cross and Wheel, so a defense that sits in Cover 3 or plays a deep safety over the top can take away your shot plays without much risk
- The run concepts (Power, Iso, Dive) all attack downhill between the tackles, so a nano blitz or a stacked box with a user controlled linebacker filling the A gap can stuff the core of the playbook
- Because 70% of the snaps are under center, pre snap reads are limited in the backfield and a disguised edge pressure can hit the quarterback on play action before the fakes develop
Usage Tips
Build your 3rd and 1 and 4th and 1 audibles around the Power I set, where 9 plays and 3 RB personnel give you the most downhill runs like HB Blast and a matching play action look
Use Maryland I and Split T inside the 5 yard line, pairing a FB Dive or QB Sneak with a play action or Block and Release call so the same look threatens both the run and the leak
Keep one Shotgun call such as Mesh Sit in your audibles for 2nd and 4 to 7, where the defense expects a heavy run and crossers can beat man coverage underneath
Once your opponent starts crashing linebackers after two or three Power or Iso runs, check to a Wheel or Deep Cross play action to exploit an empty second level and flat
In four minute offense with a lead, stay in Power I and Split T, run the clock with Iso and Dive calls, and save Designed QB Run for a defense that commits every defender to the backfield
Formations in this playbook
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