Playbooks
Slot Mid Screen out of Shotgun Wide Trips HB WK is a quick-developing slot screen designed to attack aggressive pass rushes and man coverage with underneath leverage. The slot receiver sits down in the middle of the field behind a wall of blockers, including the center and both guards releasing to set up the screen, while the outside trips receivers run vertical or clear-out routes to occupy cornerbacks and remove underneath defenders from the throwing lane. The primary read is immediate: get the ball to the slot receiver on the screen as soon as he settles, using the blockers to create a running lane before defenders can react and converge.
Watch for a linebacker sitting in a shallow zone drop or spying the middle of the field, since he can undercut the screen and blow it up for a loss if he reads it quickly. Man coverage on the slot receiver with no underneath help is the ideal shell to attack, because the defender will be trailing the receiver and out of position once the blockers arrive. Zone coverages like Cover 3 with a hard-flowing linebacker to the play side can shut this down fast, so check the linebacker depth and flow before committing to the screen. Look for nano blitzes or overload pressure packages pre-snap, since those defenders are the ones this screen is designed to exploit as they crash the pocket. If the defense shows a lurking user-controlled defender sitting in the shallow middle zone, consider checking down to a different play in the set like Stick or Curls X Post instead of forcing the screen into a trap.
Call this play when you see man coverage or a heavy pre-snap blitz look, since aggressive defensive linemen and blitzing linebackers will run themselves out of the play and create running room for the screen. Check the defensive alignment before the snap: if the slot cornerback is playing tight man or a linebacker is crashing downhill, this screen punishes both. Use the hot route menu sparingly here, since the timing of the blockers releasing is baked into the design, but you can flare the backside outside receiver into a quick out to hold a flowing safety if needed. This play pairs well with HB Angle Screen and HB Slip Screen in the same set, since defenses that adjust to stop one screen concept open themselves up to the other. Save Slot Mid Screen for third and short or second and medium situations where defenses are more likely to bring pressure, and mix it in after running Quick Slants or Stick from this same formation to condition the defense into thinking pass first.