Playbooks

HB Draw

Shotgun·Spread Y-Flex·11
DrawRun Play
Play diagram for HB Draw from Shotgun Spread Y-Flex in Madden 27

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

In 10 playbooks

Air Raid Classic OffenseOffenseBengals OffenseOffenseBills OffenseOffensePackers OffenseOffenseShotgun Classic OffenseOffenseSuperstar QB ImprovisorSuperstar QB ScramblerNFL Live Bengals OffenseOffenseNFL Live Bills OffenseOffenseNFL Live Packers OffenseOffense

Breakdown

HB Draw out of Spread Y-Flex Shotgun shows four wide receivers running vertical stems to hold the deep defenders while the offensive line sets up in a pass protection look before opening lanes for the delayed handoff. The tight end stays in to chip and help the interior blocking, disguising the run behind a pass-heavy shell. This is a base run play designed to exploit aggressive pass rushers and light boxes, with the primary read being the frontside gap created by the guard and center combo before working backside if the defense overpursues.

Defensive Reads

Watch for stacked or crashing defensive ends who sell the pass rush hard, since HB Draw is designed to let them run past the play. Identify linebacker depth pre-snap, if they are sitting shallow in zone drops they can fill the draw lane quickly and blow it up. Beware of user controlled defenders spying the quarterback or sitting in the middle of the field, as they are the primary threat to diagnose the draw and make the tackle for minimal gain. This play struggles against disciplined defenses running zone coverage with linebackers reading the backfield instead of dropping deep, so avoid calling it against teams that show patience. Man coverage with aggressive underneath blitzers can be a green light situation since those defenders are occupied downfield, giving the running back a clean cutback lane.

Usage Tips

Call this on early downs or in obvious passing situations like 2nd and long to bait defenders into upfield pass rush lanes.

Check the box count pre-snap, this play hits hardest against six defenders in the box or fewer with light nickel or dime personnel on the field.

Use hot routes sparingly since the four vertical routes are already occupying the deep defenders, but you can motion a receiver to check leverage against man coverage.

Pair this with RPO Read Screen or RPO Alert Screen from the same formation so the defense has to respect both the quick game and the delayed run action.

Mix HB Draw in after calling Four Verticals a few times so linebackers start dropping deep in coverage, opening up the interior run lanes.

Other Plays in Spread Y-Flex