Playbooks

Stick Wheel

Shotgun·Trey Open HB Str·11
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This play belongs to no NFL team or scheme playbook, so it may not appear in the in-game builder.

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

In 1 playbook

Air Raid Classic OffenseOffense

Breakdown

Stick Wheel out of Shotgun Trey Open HB Str is a man beater built around a wheel route from the backfield combined with a stick concept to the trips side. The HB releases out of the backfield and turns his stick into a wheel up the sideline, looking to exploit man coverage or a linebacker who cannot stay on top, while the trips side runs stick combinations (flat, hitch, and slant) to hold underneath defenders and clear space. Protection is a standard slide scheme, so the primary read progression starts with the wheel route against man leverage, then works down to the quick stick flat route as the checkdown against zone drops.

Defensive Reads

Watch for a corner or linebacker who follows the HB out of the backfield in man coverage, that leverage tells you whether the wheel route has a clean angle up the sideline. Identify single high safety shells like Cover 1 or Cover 3, since the wheel route thrives against man match schemes where the underneath defender cannot flip his hips fast enough. Look for a linebacker sinking into a deep zone drop or a safety rotating over the top, this is a sign of Cover 3 or Cover 4 match, which can suffocate the wheel route if the defender stays disciplined. Be alert for a user controlled defender lurking in the flat or spying the HB release, this is the most common way opponents shut down Stick Wheel in competitive play. Recognize disguised blitzes where the HB is asked to block, if the protection call sends the HB out late, that delay changes your first read timing and forces a quicker check to the stick concept.

Usage Tips

Check the safety alignment before the snap, if you see a single high safety or man coverage indicators like a corner shaded outside on the HB alignment, key on the wheel route immediately after the snap.

Use motion or a quick pre-snap read on the linebacker depth, if the linebacker responsible for the HB is sitting flat footed at the snap, the wheel will win over the top almost every time.

Hot route the flat route on the trips side into a shallow drag if you are facing heavy Cover 3 buzz looks, this gives you a second answer against zone beaters that sit underneath.

Pair this play with Stick or Deep Stick earlier in a series so the defense starts respecting the quick game, then hit them with Stick Wheel once you see linebackers stepping up to jump the flat.

Use this on early down and medium distance situations, first and ten or second and seven, when defenses are more likely to play base man coverage before committing to heavier blitz packages.

Other Plays in Trey Open HB Str