Playbooks
Overview
Start with the honest answer on the variant question: Patriots Offense and NFL Live Patriots Offense are effectively the same book. They share all 615 of this playbook's plays and differ by zero sets, so the choice between them is cosmetic. Pick whichever one your menu loads faster and spend your prep time on audible construction instead of hunting for a hidden formation.
What you actually get is one of the larger offensive team playbooks in the game, bigger than 89% of the 64 offensive team books, and it is a Shotgun book first and everything else second. 386 of the 615 plays (63%) live in Shotgun across 24 sets, which is a huge spread of pass sets to sort through and a deep well of Pass Play, Play Action, Spot and Cover 3 Beater concepts to lean on. Singleback adds 105 plays (17%) over 8 sets as the balanced middle ground, and I Form contributes 63 plays (10%) in 4 sets for FB Dive, Counter Weak (1) and the downhill Power Run work that keeps light boxes honest.
The tail of the book is thin and you should plan around that. Pistol is only 24 plays (4%) in 2 sets, Strong I 15 plays (2%), Goal Line Offense 13 plays (2%), Weak I a single set with 6 plays, and Hail Mary 3 plays. Personnel runs from 11 and 12 spread looks all the way up to 23, 32 and 13 heavy groupings, so the game plan this supports is a spread passing attack that can shift into two back and three tight end personnel for Power, Counter, Toss and Dive when the down and distance calls for it. It is built for a player who wants to live in Shotgun, motion receivers into empty or bunch alignments, and use the Singleback and I Form run game as a change of pace rather than the identity.
Scheme Fit
This playbook wants a quarterback who is comfortable reading coverage from Shotgun on the majority of snaps, with enough accuracy on short and intermediate throws to live on Spot, Flat and drag concepts rather than deep shots. A receiving back who can be motioned out and hot routed is close to mandatory given the 20 and 11 personnel usage, and you also want at least two capable tight ends and a fullback with real blocking to make the 23, 32, 13 and I Form Power and Counter calls worth the trip under center. Pick Patriots Offense if you are a pass first player who wants an enormous Shotgun menu and 24 sets to hide tendencies in, and who is willing to treat the 105 Singleback plays and 63 I Form plays as a deliberate change of pace instead of a primary run identity.
Example Plays from this Playbook
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Strengths
- Shotgun depth at 386 plays across 24 sets means you can run the same route combos out of multiple alignments and build a full audible package of man beaters, zone beaters and Cover 3 Beater concepts without ever leaving one personnel grouping, something a run heavy book with six or eight pass sets cannot do.
- Personnel range from 11 and 20 spread groupings up to 23, 32 and 13 heavy groupings lets you carry formation subs that put an extra tight end or a receiving back in the slot, so the defense has to re-align to your sub package instead of your play call.
- The 105 play Singleback block across 8 sets is the bridge formation: it hides Power Run and Play Action out of the same look, so play-action rollouts sell off the run you just showed rather than tipping pass on personnel alone.
- I Form gives you 63 plays in 4 sets including FB Dive, Counter Weak (1) and Counter F, which is enough downhill Power and Counter volume to punish a defense that sits in nickel and dime to answer your Shotgun tendency.
- Motion concepts are covered in this book, and with 24 Shotgun sets you can motion a back or receiver across the formation to read man versus zone pre-snap on almost every call, then hot route the motion man into a flat or drag against what you see.
Weaknesses
- 63% of the book in Shotgun is a tendency any decent opponent reads off your formation history, and once they know you are lining up in Shotgun they can sit in nickel, play two high, and user a defender over the middle without fearing a heavy run look.
- Pistol is 24 plays in only 2 sets, so if you want the under center run read with Shotgun spacing you are working from a very small menu and opponents will learn those sets quickly.
- Goal Line Offense is 13 plays in 2 sets and Strong I is 15 plays in 2 sets, which is thin for short yardage and inside the five, so goal line and fourth and one situations force you back into I Form or Shotgun rather than a true power package.
- Weak I is a single set with 6 plays, meaning your weak side power and counter answers are almost entirely I Form based and easy to overload by shading the defensive line strong.
- With only 3 Hail Mary plays across 2 sets, end of half and end of game desperation situations are limited, and you are better off running four verticals from Shotgun than reaching for the Hail Mary package.
Usage Tips
Build your primary audible package entirely inside Shotgun, picking three or four of the 24 sets and carrying a Spot concept, a Cover 3 Beater, a Play Action, and a Flat or drag concept so you can answer any coverage on second and third down without changing formation.
Use Singleback on first and ten and second and medium: 105 plays over 8 sets gives you the run and Play Action pairing you need to set up play-action rollouts later in the drive from an identical alignment.
Go to I Form on third and one through third and three and in four minute offense, calling FB Dive, Counter Weak (1) or Counter F against the light boxes your Shotgun tendency invites.
Save Pistol for early downs when you want a run look without going under center, but do not build a game plan on it since it is only 2 sets and 24 plays.
Inside the five, get to Goal Line Offense or Strong I with 23 or 32 personnel rather than trying to force a Shotgun fade, and pre-snap shift the line or motion your tight end to create the numbers advantage on the play side.
Formations in this playbook
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