Playbooks
PA Slot Choice out of Shotgun Wide Trips uses a play-action fake to hold the linebackers before the quarterback works a choice route from the slot receiver against man or zone leverage. The offensive line sells the run fake to freeze second level defenders while the slot receiver reads the nearest defender and breaks in, out, or vertically based on coverage, making this an option route based man and zone beater. The primary read progression starts with the choice route since it dictates based on the defender, then works to the trips side outside routes if the choice is jumped, with the checkdown as the last resort against a hard blitz.
Watch the slot defender at the snap, if he bails into a zone drop the choice route should sit down in the window, if he stays attached in man the choice route breaks away from his leverage. Man coverage with a single high safety is the ideal shell for this play since the play-action freezes the linebackers and removes deep help over the choice route. Cover 3 zone with aggressive linebacker flow can be exposed if the choice route settles into the vacated hole behind the underneath defenders. Watch for a user controlled defender sitting in the shallow zone or lurking near the slot, this is the biggest threat to jump the choice route since it is the primary target. Disguised blitzes that bring extra rushers off the edge or through the A gap can collapse the pocket before the choice route develops, so check protection numbers and be ready to throw off the fake quickly if defenders are crashing hard.
Use pre-snap motion or a hot route audible to identify if the defense shifts a defender over the choice route, this tells you if you are facing man or zone before the snap.
Against single high safety looks, trust the choice route since the slot defender usually has no help over the top and will bite on the play-action.
Call this play on early downs like first or second and medium to convey run threat, since the play-action fake plays best when the defense respects the ground game tendency.
Pair this play with HB Sweep or HB Mid Draw earlier in a series so the defense keys run fits, then hit them with PA Slot Choice once linebackers start crashing downhill.
If you see two high safeties pre-snap, consider hot routing the choice route into a quick out to beat off coverage from zone defenders sitting underneath, or switch to Four Verticals from the same set to stress the shell vertically.