Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 16 playbooks
Breakdown
HB Angle out of Shotgun Trips TE Flex is a man beater built around the angle route out of the backfield. The HB releases into the flat then breaks sharply upfield on an angle route designed to counter linebackers in man coverage, while the trips side runs a corner route from the slot and an out breaking route from the outside receiver to clear space, and the flex TE runs a deep dig across the field with the backside receiver on a shallow drag away from the play. The primary read starts with the HB angle route against man leverage, then progresses to the TE dig working across the middle if the backer carries the HB or if the defense shows zone.
Defensive Reads
Watch the Mike linebacker depth and alignment before the snap since he is the primary defender responsible for carrying the HB angle route in man coverage. Identify blitz packages early because if the backer walks up into the A or B gap, the angle route becomes an immediate hot route beater against pressure. Look for a nickel or dime defender shaded over the slot receiver on the trips side to determine if the corner route can hold a safety and open a throwing lane for the TE dig. Post snap, key any user controlled linebacker sitting in a shallow zone or spying the backfield, since this defender is the primary threat to jump the angle route. Cover 3 or cover 4 shells with linebackers dropping into hook zones tend to shut this play down, so be ready to progress to the TE dig or backside drag against zone coverage.
Usage Tips
Use HB Angle on early downs or third and short when you expect man coverage tied to the running back. Check the Mike linebacker and nickel corner pre-snap: if either is walked down over the backfield or shows blitz alignment, the angle route will win quickly on the option route break. If the defense shows two high safeties or off man, hot route the backside drag into a deeper dig to stress the middle void. Pair this play with HB Slip Screen from the same set to punish defenses that key on the backfield route and crash downhill after seeing angle route success. Sequence it with Verticals or Mtn Y Post to keep safeties honest deep so the angle route stays open underneath in man coverage.
