Playbooks
Quick Reference
Breakdown
PA FL Clown is a play-action shot play out of the Pistol U Off Trips formation with 12 personnel. Off the run fake, the two inside trips receivers run vertical seams (yellow and red) that break upfield after a stem step, stacking the middle of the field, while the outside trips receiver runs a deep out breaking route (yellow) toward the sideline. The lone receiver on the backside runs an outlet route underneath (blue), giving the quarterback a checkdown if the deep routes are covered. This is a man beater designed to isolate linebackers and safeties on the seam routes while the deep out clears space for a big chunk gain against off coverage.
Defensive Reads
Read the middle linebacker and strong safety at the snap, if they step up hard on the run fake the seam routes will be wide open behind them. Watch for Cover 2 or Cover 4 shells, since two deep safeties can bracket the seam routes and force a check to the underneath outlet. Identify man coverage on the trips receivers pre-snap, corners playing tight with no safety help over the top signals a green light for the deep out route. Post-snap, key any user-controlled defender dropping into a lurk spot in the middle of the field, that lurk threat can jump the inside seam and bait a turnover. Watch linebacker blitz timing off the edge, since play action rollouts and shot plays like this are vulnerable to fast interior pressure if the offensive line does not hold up.
Usage Tips
Use this on early downs, especially first or second and short, so the run fake actually holds the linebackers and safeties.
Check the play clock and identify single high versus two high safety shells before the snap, since single high leaves the seam routes wide open against man coverage.
If the defense shows Cover 3 or heavy zone, hot route the backside outlet into a deeper crossing route to attack the void behind underneath zone defenders.
Pair this play with HB Counter or Strong Power earlier in a series to sell the run fake and get linebackers to bite harder on the play action.
Combine with Quick Slants or Stick from the same set to keep the defense guessing between quick game and deep shots off similar formation looks.
