Playbooks

Empty Trips Speed

Shotgun·11

Specialists3DRBGadgetPower HBSLWR

Set alignment for Empty Trips Speed from Shotgun in Madden 27

At a Glance

FormationShotgun

Personnel

111 RB · 1 TE · 3 WR

Plays15

In 7 playbooks

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Overview

Empty Trips Speed is the Shotgun formation's most aggressive five-wide look out of 11 personnel. The running back and tight end leave the backfield and become receivers, with a trips bunch to one side and a weakside pair opposite. The QB is alone in the gun. Base Shotgun sets use the back as a pass protector, but this set gives up that extra blocker. In exchange, every eligible receiver gets an immediate release, and the defense is forced to declare its coverage before the snap. The Speed tag refers to the tighter, compressed splits in the trips side. Those tight splits create natural rubs, stack releases, and quick timing throws that punish defenders playing off or trailing in man.

The personnel package is where the matchup value comes from. Your tight end typically aligns as the Y inside the trips grouping, and your back is flexed out as a slot or wing option. Defenses that stay in base or nickel to respect a 11 personnel run threat end up with linebackers covering a 3DRB or a receiving TE in space. Concepts like Hoss Y Juke and Y Corner are built to isolate the Y on a linebacker or safety. Shock WR Option and Trail Shake give your SLWR a two-way go against a nickel corner. Motion plays like Mtn WR Angle, Mtn WR Screen, and Mtn Fk Screen reveal man or zone pre-snap and create leverage advantages before the ball is snapped.

The play list covers every layer of the field. You get quick game (Double In, Flanker Under, Whip Unders), intermediate flood and levels concepts (Levels, Deep Cross), a vertical red zone shot (Redzone Up), a full screen package (Jailbreak Slot Screen and the motion screens), and a QB Draw as the lone run counter against light boxes. It works as a pure spread passing set that empties the box, stretches the field horizontally, and lets a quick-reading QB attack whatever the defense shows.

Strengths

Levels and Whip Unders put multiple receivers across the underneath and intermediate zones, flooding hook and curl defenders in Cover 3 and Cover 4 and giving you a clean high-low read on the middle linebacker.
Deep Cross and Double In are strong man beaters because the compressed Speed splits create natural rubs off the trips bunch, so trailing man defenders and press corners get picked or lose leverage at the break.
Motion plays like Mtn WR Angle and Mtn Fk Screen act as a pre-snap coverage check: a defender following the motion signals man, while shifting defenders signal zone, so you know where to go with the ball before the snap.
The screen package (Jailbreak Slot Screen, Mtn WR Screen, Mtn Fk Screen) punishes heavy blitz and Cover 0 looks because five-wide spacing leaves few defenders near the ball once pass rushers commit upfield.
Hoss Y Juke and Y Corner isolate a receiving TE or 3DRB on linebackers and safeties, a mismatch you can widen by hot routing the outside receivers to go routes to clear space.

Weaknesses

With an empty backfield you only have five blockers, so any six-man pressure or overload blitz to the trips or backside creates a free rusher that must be answered with a hot route or a quick throw.
Nano blitzes and simulated pressures from the edge are hard to diagnose here, because there is no back to slide protection or chip, and sacks come fast if you hold the ball for a deep read.
A good user defender robbing the middle hook zone can kill Levels, Deep Cross, and Whip Unders, since so many concepts in this set target the same intermediate window over the middle.
QB Draw is the only true run, so opponents can safely play dime or quarters personnel, drop an extra defender into coverage, and take away your quick game without fearing the run.
The screens become predictable once an opponent reads the motion tells, and defenders keyed on the flat or playing soft squat zones can blow them up for losses.

Usage Tips

Run a motion play first (Mtn WR Angle or Mtn Fk Screen) to confirm man or zone, then audible to Deep Cross or Double In against man and Levels or Whip Unders against Cover 3 and Cover 4.

If you see six or more defenders showing pressure, hot route the Y or the flexed RB to a quick slant or drag, or audible straight to Jailbreak Slot Screen to punish the blitz.

Use this set on 3rd and medium and in two-minute drills where quick timing throws and sideline breaks let you move the chains without relying on the run game.

Call QB Draw when the defense answers with dime personnel and five or fewer defenders in the box, especially after a string of quick passes has the linebackers dropping deep.

Inside the red zone, pair Redzone Up with Y Corner. The corner route attacks Cover 2 and quarters safeties, and the vertical works against single high man with a back shoulder throw.