Playbooks

RPO Alert Screen

Shotgun·Trips TE Offset·11
Screen PassRPOPass PlayRun Play
Likely unavailable in the playbook builder
This play belongs to no NFL team or scheme playbook, so it may not appear in the in-game builder.
Play diagram for RPO Alert Screen from Shotgun Trips TE Offset in Madden 27

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

Not in any team playbook.

Breakdown

RPO Alert Screen from Shotgun Trips TE Offset is an RPO built around a bubble style screen to the boundary receiver, with the outside trips receiver blocking down and the slot receiver releasing into a shallow bubble route for the alert throw. On the strong side, the tight end runs a quick out breaking route while the read key stays on the inside linebacker to trigger either the give or the screen. This is a run pre read RPO, meaning the QB reads the linebacker flow post snap to decide between handing off inside zone or pulling and firing the screen, making it effective against overaggressive run fits and light boxes.

Defensive Reads

Watch the flat defender and slot corner depth before the snap, since a defender sitting inside at five yards or less signals a jump on the screen read. Post snap, key the play side linebacker: if he crashes downhill on run action, the bubble screen behind him is wide open. This concept struggles against teams that stay disciplined with their linebackers and keep a defender spying the bubble lane regardless of run action. Man coverage with an aggressive slot corner blitzing off the edge can blow up the screen before it develops, so be ready to hand the ball off instead. Zone coverage with soft corners sitting off at seven or more yards tends to allow the bubble to pick up easy yards after the catch since the nearest defender has to close distance.

Usage Tips

Check the box count before the snap and only key the alert if the defense shows six or fewer in the box, since a stacked box favors the screen automatically.

Use this on early downs like first and ten or second and short to keep the defense honest and set up explosive plays later in the series.

If the slot corner sits low in man or the flat defender crashes hard on run action, pull and throw the bubble immediately since the blockers are already leveraged.

Pair this play with RPO Alert Bubble and RPO Zone Alert Bubble in the same set so the defense cannot key on a single alert shape, forcing linebackers to hesitate.

Snap the ball quickly after a pre snap motion check to prevent the defense from rotating a safety down into the screen lane before the ball is out.

Other Plays in Trips TE Offset