Playbooks

Stick

Shotgun·Trey Open·11
StickStick ConceptPass Play
Play diagram for Stick from Shotgun Trey Open in Madden 27

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

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Breakdown

Stick out of Shotgun Trey Open lines up with a bunch look to the trips side and an isolated receiver to the weak side. The trips side runs the classic stick concept: the outer receiver runs a quick out, the middle man sits down in the stick/hook area, and the inside receiver runs a flat route underneath, while the backside X runs a vertical seam up the numbers and the RB checks protection before releasing. This is a zone beater at its core, designed to attack the flat and curl to hook defenders with a horizontal stretch, and the primary read progression starts with the flat, works to the stick sitting down over the second level, and comes back to the vertical shot if the coverage overcommits underneath.

Defensive Reads

Identify the flat defender's depth and leverage pre-snap since Stick attacks the space between the curl and flat zones directly. Watch for a user linebacker sitting the stick route deep in the middle of the field, since a smart human defender jumping the sit route can bait you into the flat throw instead. Check safety alignment before the snap: two high safeties usually means the underneath stick and flat combo will be open, while one high safety rolled down can signal man coverage or a robber look designed to jump the stick. This play struggles against aggressive man blitzes since the stick route has to sit down against a defender running through his route, so watch for corners pressing the trips side pre-snap. Cover 4 or match quarters coverage can confuse the stick concept because the underneath defenders may sink into different zones than expected, so key the linebacker drops immediately after the snap.

Usage Tips

Use this on second and short to medium third down since the stick and flat combo is designed to pick up quick, easy yardage against zone drops.

Check the flat defender before the snap: if a corner or nickel is sitting in the flat with outside leverage, the stick route sitting down behind him becomes the easy answer.

Hot route the backside seam into a quick slant or drag against man coverage if you see a corner playing tight outside leverage with no safety help over the top.

Pair this call with Curls or Y Cross from the same set to keep the defense guessing between horizontal stretch concepts and vertical shots off similar formation looks.

Against Cover 3, throw the stick route immediately since it sits right in the hole between the underneath zones, and against Cover 2 look to the flat route first since the corner has to respect the vertical shell.

Other Plays in Trey Open