Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 11 playbooks
Breakdown
Inside Zone out of Shotgun Trips X Nasty is a zone run play design with the offensive line stepping in unison toward the play side to create a natural running lane based on defensive flow. The HB aligns next to the QB and takes the handoff, reading blocks from the backside guard to the play side gap rather than a predetermined hole. The three receivers stay in their trips alignment on this play with no visible routes, meaning the entire concept is committed to the run action, and the primary read is the HB identifying the first open crease off the double team combo up front.
Defensive Reads
Watch the defensive line alignment pre-snap, since a shaded nose tackle or 3-technique can clog the natural zone rhythm and force the HB to cut back immediately. Key the linebacker depth at the snap, if both linebackers are sitting shallow and reading run keys instead of retreating, expect them to fill downhill fast and cut off cutback lanes. Man coverage on the trips receivers with the corners playing tight technique signals extra numbers in the box, which is a tough look for this Inside Zone since the alley defenders can fly to the ball unblocked. Look for user-controlled defenders flowing hard to the play side call, since a disciplined backside linebacker or safety filling the cutback lane is the primary counter to slow this play down. Blitz packages that send extra defenders through the A and B gaps pre-snap will beat this play consistently unless the O-line executes the combo block cleanly, so watch for stacked interior alignments before the snap.
Usage Tips
Run this out of trips formations against defenses stacking the box on early downs since the trips alignment forces one extra defender to respect the perimeter, opening up more room on the interior for the zone scheme.
Use pre-snap motion or a quick glance at the second level linebackers to see if they are crashing downhill, since Inside Zone hits fastest against light boxes with only two or three defenders in the tackle box.
Mix this play in on second and short or first and ten to keep the defense honest, then pair it with Mtn HB Swing or HB Slip Screen out of the same set to punish linebackers who start keying the zone run too aggressively.
If the defense shows a heavy run blitz look with linebackers stacked tight to the line, bounce your aiming point wider and trust the backside cutback lane rather than forcing it between the tackles.
Pair this with HB Mid Draw from the same set to give defenses two different tempo run looks out of an identical presnap picture, making it harder for user defenders to jump the play at the snap.
