Playbooks

Stick

Shotgun·Trips TE Offset·11

Stick Stick Concept Pass Play

Play diagram for Stick from Shotgun Trips TE Offset in Madden 27

Quick Reference

FormationShotgun

SetTrips TE Offset

Personnel

111 RB · 1 TE · 3 WR

In 4 playbooks

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Breakdown

Stick out of Shotgun Trips TE Offset shows a classic Stick concept built into the trips side, with the backside receiver on a deep vertical clear route to hold the safety and cornerback. Working from the trips bunch, the outside receiver runs a quick out to the flat, the inner slot sits down on a stick route at roughly five yards, and the TE releases underneath on a swing/flat route out of the backfield look, creating a stacked triangle read at short, intermediate, and flat depths. The five offensive linemen stay in to pass protect while the QB works the stick concept from inside out, reading the flat defender to decide between the swing, stick, and out. This is a proven zone beater against Cover 2 and Cover 3 because it attacks the underneath defenders horizontally, but it also holds up against man coverage due to the natural picks created by the stacked trips alignment.

Defensive Reads

Identify the flat defender immediately after the snap since the stick concept lives and dies on whether that defender widens for the TE swing or sits on the stick route. Watch for a user controlled linebacker sitting in the stick window, since a smart defender will lurk that route and jump the throw if the QB stares it down too long. Cover 2 with soft corners will struggle to cover both the flat and the stick simultaneously, so attack the seam between the corner and the underneath zone defender. Man coverage with an overloaded blitz on the trips side is the biggest threat, since the stick route can get picked off by traffic but the TE swing becomes the quick answer against pressure. If the defense shows Cover 4 or a two high shell with deep zone drops, expect the underneath defenders to sit hard on the stick and out routes, so be ready to check down to the TE swing for positive yardage instead of forcing a tighter window throw.

Usage Tips

Pre-snap, check for two high safeties or a single high shell to determine whether the stick route or the deep clear out route will be more available post-snap.

If the defense shows Cover 3, target the stick sitting in the hole between the underneath zone defenders since that soft spot is the primary conflict zone for the flat and curl defenders.

Hot route the TE swing into a flat route if you are getting blitzed frequently, since the quick TE release can beat man coverage off the edge and gives you a fast outlet against nano blitzes.

Use this play on second and short to medium distance situations where defenses are more likely to sit in zone shells, since the stick concept thrives against static zone drops rather than aggressive man press.

Pair this call with RPO Alert Bubble or RPO Zone Alert Bubble from the same formation to keep the defense guessing between a true dropback pass and a run read, forcing linebackers to hesitate on their zone drops.