Playbooks
Overview
Trips Y-Flex is Shotgun's answer to the problem of getting a tight end into space without tipping run. The set puts three receivers to the strong side with the TE flexed off the line as the middle man in the trips bunch, while the single receiver isolates on the backside and the HB sets to the QB's side for pass protection. Because the TE is detached rather than inline, defenses playing 11 personnel with a base nickel look are forced to either cover him with a linebacker in space or roll a safety down, and both answers give you information before the snap.
Strengths
- Strong Flood, Strong Flood X-Cross, and Corner Strike attack Cover 3 and Cover 4 with three level flood spacing that stretches the flat defender and the curl/hook player at the same time.
- Stick N Nod and WR Fork are elite against man coverage, and the flexed TE running Stick out of the trips alignment routinely wins against slower linebackers in the slot.
- Four Verticals and Go DBL Post punish single high shells, and hot routing the number three receiver to a drag or sit route gives you a free man beater underneath.
- Hi Lo Dig, Dagger PoCo, and Curls give you high/low reads over the middle that break down zone match rules when the deep clear route pulls the safety.
- Read Option, Inside Zone, HB Mid Draw, and HB Off Tackle keep the run game live from the same personnel, and the trips side pulls a defender out of the box so you are attacking lighter fronts.
Weaknesses
- The single receiver side is thin, so overload blitzes and nano pressure off that edge get home fast with only the HB and tackle to account for the extra rusher.
- Trips concentration lets defenses cloud one side with a slide adjustment or press bail, and a user-controlled safety sitting on the flood/corner combo takes away the primary read entirely.
- Pass protection is five man on most concepts, and Four Verticals or Go DBL Post leave you exposed if the opponent brings six and you have not slid the line or blocked the HB.
- The isolated backside receiver becomes a crutch, and good opponents will user that matchup or bracket him once they see you leaning on the iso every time you get a soft corner.
- Screens like HB Slip Screen are easy to read out of this alignment because the trips side leaves fewer blockers releasing to the screen side.
Usage Tips
Check the number of defenders over the trips side before the snap. Two defenders on three receivers means the flood and Corner Strike concepts have leverage, three or more means work the isolated backside receiver.
On third and medium, run Stick or Stick N Nod and read the flexed TE first. If the defense shows man, hot route the outside trips receiver to a fade to clear the sideline.
Use Read Option and Inside Zone on early downs to force the defense to keep a linebacker in the box, then come back to Four Verticals or Dagger PoCo out of the same look.
Motion the number three receiver across pre-snap to diagnose coverage, then snap it and take the man beater if a defender follows.
Against heavy pressure users, slide protect toward the single receiver side and block the HB before dialing up Go DBL Post or PA Switch Dig, since both are slow developing.
