Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 2 playbooks
Breakdown
This WR Screen out of Pistol Y Trips is a quick-hitting screen pass designed to get the ball out to the perimeter receiver in space. The outside trips receiver runs a short hitch and turns to catch the screen while the adjacent slot receiver blocks downfield to spring him, and the frontside tackle release path shows the offensive line setting up lead blocks out to the numbers. The lone receiver on the backside runs a vertical route purely to hold the deep defender and clear space, meaning the primary read is throw the screen immediately once the blocks set up, with the vertical route only live if the defense sells out on the screen.
Defensive Reads
Man coverage with press corners at the line is the ideal shell for this screen since it removes underneath help and lets your blockers work in space. Watch for a user controlled linebacker or safety sitting in a shallow zone or spy alignment presnap, since that defender can read and jump the screen for a big loss. Cover 2 and Cover 3 zone shells with fast flowing linebackers shut this down quickly if the defense reads screen and swarms before blocks form. Blitz packages that send extra rushers off the edge away from the screen side are the most vulnerable, since numbers are removed from the play side alley. Post snap, key the flat defender and any linebacker flowing outside the tackle box, if they diagnose immediately and squeeze the edge the screen has no room to develop.
Usage Tips
Call this play when the defense shows an aggressive edge blitz or overloaded pressure look, since the quick screen release beats defenders getting home before blocks set.
Check the flat defender and slot corner depth pre snap, if they are sitting shallow or crashing hard on run action this screen will not have room to develop.
Use the vertical route on the backside as a hot route conversion to a quick out or slant if you see a corner cheating up to jump the screen after repeated use.
Pair this play with HB Slam or HB Dive earlier in a series to bait linebackers into crashing downhill, then hit this screen to punish overpursuit.
Best deployed on early downs or short yardage third downs against nickel and dime packages that lack numbers to the play side.
