Playbooks
Quick Slants out of Shotgun Wide Trips HB WK is a quick game man beater built to get the ball out in under two seconds. The trips side runs a stack of slant routes designed to pick off man defenders and settle into soft spots underneath zone coverage, while the backside receiver runs a quick in or slant to give you a two way go against man alignment. The primary read starts with the inside slant from the trips bunch, then works to the outside slant if the flat defender jumps the shortest route, and finally checks down to the HB out of the backfield if both slants are taken away.
Look for man coverage indicators like corners lined up inside or outside shade with no help over the top, since the natural rub from the trips stack will win instantly against man defenders trying to fight through traffic. Identify Cover 2 or Cover 4 shells with flat defenders sitting low, because those defenders can undercut the shortest slant route and jump the throw if you do not read the leverage correctly. Watch linebacker depth at the snap. Shallow linebackers who crash the short slants leave the HB check release wide open in the void behind them. Beware of Cover 3 sink concepts where the corner and safety rotate to squeeze the underneath throwing lanes, since this can bait a risky throw into a lurking user linebacker. Recognize blitz packages that bring extra defenders off the edge, since the quick slant timing usually beats the rush before it arrives, but a well timed nano blitz up the middle can disrupt the quarterback's first read window.
Fire this play out quickly before pressure has time to develop, since the routes are designed to be released in under two seconds.
Check the corner alignment pre-snap. If you see press man or tight bump coverage on the trips side, expect natural rubs to spring your slants open immediately.
Use the HB check release as a built in hot route answer against Cover 3 sink or Cover 4 teams that squeeze the underneath windows.
Pair this play with HB Angle Screen or HB Slip Screen from the same set to punish defenses that start keying the quick slant tempo and crash downhill too fast.
Best used on third and short or second and medium when you need a high percentage completion and want to avoid negative plays against blitz heavy defenses.