Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
PA Power O is a play-action shot play out of the Pistol Wing formation that sells the Power O run fake before releasing three routes into a vertical stretch. The Y receiver runs a corner route from the inline alignment while the X on the opposite side clears out on a deep vertical up the numbers, and the flanker runs a shallow flat/out route underneath after an initial inside release. This is a man beater built to attack single high or press man coverage by stacking a corner route behind a flat route on one side while the backside vertical occupies the far cornerback, with the primary read progressing from the corner route to the vertical if the corner route is capped, and the flat route as the checkdown against a hard sell on the run fake.
Defensive Reads
Look at the safety depth before the snap; two deep safeties at 10 plus yards signal zone coverage and tell you to work the corner route into the void behind the flat defender. A single high safety cheating to the play side alerts you to man coverage or a cover 3 rotation, both of which the corner route is designed to beat with a good throw to the boundary. Watch the flat defender and outside cornerback; if the corner sits at the line in press with no safety help over the top, expect the corner route to win quickly since there is no deep help on that side. If the defense shows a hard blitz look with linebackers crashing downhill, the play action fake can freeze them, but check for a user controlled defender spying the quarterback or dropping into the throwing lane on the vertical route since that is the biggest lurk threat on this concept. Zone defenses that keep two deep safeties and drop a linebacker into the intermediate flat/corner area can take away both the corner route and the flat route, forcing you to rely on the backside vertical winning one on one.
Usage Tips
Run this on early downs, ideally second and short or on run downs after establishing HB Power O and Strong Power to make the play fake believable to run defenders and safeties. Check the safety alignment pre-snap; if you see two high safeties bail into deep halves, the corner route toward the sideline has a soft window in the seam of the coverage. If you see man coverage or press alignment on the outside receivers, prioritize the corner route as your first read since it is the primary man beater on this concept. Hot route the backside vertical into a slant or dig if you are facing zone heavy defenses to give yourself an intermediate option instead of forcing the deep ball. Pair this with PA Boot and PA Ctr Waggle in your play calling script so the defense has to respect multiple play action shots off similar run action, then mix in HB Counter and HB Stretch to keep the box honest.
