Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
Bubble Screen out of Shotgun Trips HB Wk is a quick-hitting screen designed to get the ball into space on the trips side. The diagram shows the two inside trips receivers blocking or releasing to wall off defenders while the outside trips receiver bubbles out and behind the line before turning upfield, with the backside X receiver running a vertical route to hold the corner and safety away from the screen. The lone HB Wk aligns away from the trips look and simply releases upfield as a decoy. Primary read is the bubble receiver in the flat, and the QB should throw this almost immediately off the snap once the perimeter blockers get in front.
Defensive Reads
Watch for a slot corner or nickel defender sitting outside in a hard press look, since that alignment allows them to blow up the bubble before it develops. Zone defenses with linebackers reading run first tend to get gained on by the numbers advantage, but a linebacker with fast flow to the flat can shrink the window and force a negative play. Look for a defender crashing downhill immediately at the snap, that is a lurk read or spy assignment sniffing out the screen. If the defense shows a Cover 3 or Cover 4 shell with corners playing off, they can rally quickly and limit the gain even though the initial catch is there. Man coverage with no underneath help funneled to the trips side is the ideal shell to attack, since the blockers can isolate defenders and create a running lane.
Usage Tips
Call this on early downs or short yardage to catch aggressive man blitzes and nano blitzes that overload the box, since the quick throw negates the rush before it develops. Check the defensive alignment pre-snap: if the corner over the bubble receiver is playing tight man or the slot corner is crashing hard off the edge, this play punishes that aggression. Use hot routes to convert the two inside trips receivers into stalk blocks if you see linebackers flowing fast to the flat, giving your bubble receiver a cleaner alley. Pair this with Slot Hitch or Quick Slants from the same Trips HB Wk set to keep the defense guessing between quick game and screen action. Save this for third and short or as a change of pace after running Read Option or HB Off Tackle to draw the defense's eyes into the backfield.
