Playbooks
At a Glance
Overview
Y Off Trips Wk takes the standard trips alignment and flips the strength read by placing the trio to the weak side of the formation with the tight end detached and offset behind the line. Instead of the compressed bunch look or a true 3x1 spread, you get a trips cluster away from where most defenses set their strength, plus a Y that can leak into the flat, chip, or work the middle without ever being stuck on the line as a sixth blocker. That off ball alignment is the whole point: the tight end is a free release body who does not get bracketed by the strong side hook player, and your slot receivers get clean stems against overhang defenders who are often the third or fourth best coverage player on the field.
The 11 personnel grouping keeps three receivers plus a receiving tight end on the field, which forces the defense into nickel or big nickel and stops them from parking base linebackers over the trips side without conceding a mismatch. That is where the play list earns its money. You get RPO Alert Split Bubble, RPO Alert Bubble Dive, RPO Alert Mtn Dive, RPO Thunder Bubble, RPO Glance Bubble, RPO Zone Dive, and Mtn RPO Dive to punish the box count pre snap, and then Y Lead Read Option, Boomerang Y Lead Read Option, and Mtn Y Lead Read Option to make the edge defender wrong when he chases the give. Layer in Inside Zone, Inside Zone Split, Outside Zone, HB Power O, Counter Y, Tackle Trap, and HB Draw and you have a full run tree from a look the defense reads as pass heavy.
Through the air, the concept variety is unusually deep for a trips set. Four Verticals, Sluggo Seam, 22 Sluggo Verts, and Slot Fade attack single high shells vertically. Hi Lo Dig, Dig Cross, Quick Unders, Post N Cross, Bounce Slot Cross, Mtn Y Cross, and Boomerang Y Cross give you crossers and levels reads that shred man coverage and pull user defenders out of position. Curls, Mtn Curls, Curls Combo, Stick, Slants, and 22 Fade Stops are your zone beaters and quick game answers on rhythm. The screen game (HB Slip Screen, TE Screen) and play action shots (Boomerang PA Portland, Mtn PA Portland, Bounce PA Post Curls, PA Slide, Chip Corner Strike) keep aggressive users honest once they start crashing the RPO reads.
Strengths
- RPO menu is the deepest in the set list (Split Bubble, Bubble Dive, Mtn Dive, Thunder Bubble, Glance Bubble, Zone Dive) so you can win the play pre snap off box count and overhang leverage without ever making a full field read.
- Crossing concepts like Dig Cross, Hi Lo Dig, Bounce Slot Cross, Mtn Y Cross, and Post N Cross are elite man beaters because the trips side traffic naturally rubs off man defenders and drags user controlled defenders across the formation.
- The off ball tight end gets a free release, so you can hot route him to a drag, option, or corner and attack the flat or hook void without a defensive end reroute, which is a huge edge versus cover 3 and match zones.
- Four Verticals, Sluggo Seam, 22 Sluggo Verts, and Slot Fade stress single high safeties with three vertical stems from the weak side, forcing the deep middle player to pick a receiver and leaving the other seam open.
- Weak side trips means the defense often has fewer bodies to that side pre snap, so quick game (Slants, Stick, Curls, Quick Unders, Quick Short Post) hits on rhythm against soft or off coverage before any user can rotate.
Weaknesses
- Pass protection is thin with the tight end off the line, so A gap and overload nano blitzes from the strong side get home before crossers develop, especially on the deeper concepts like Post N Cross and Four Verticals.
- Heavy man coverage with a user in the trips slot window kills the bubble and quick game reads, and elite users will sit on the Curls and Stick landmarks all game.
- Read option and RPO plays lose value against opponents who spam edge crashers or user the defensive end, turning Y Lead Read Option and Mtn RPO Dive into negative plays.
- The run game leans on Inside Zone, Outside Zone, and Power O concepts that struggle against loaded nickel fronts and pinched line adjustments, so you cannot run out of this set on obvious short yardage.
- Play action shots (Boomerang PA Portland, Mtn PA Portland, Bounce PA Post Curls) are slow developing and get blown up by immediate pressure since the fake does not hold a blitzing user defender.
Usage Tips
Read the overhang defender pre snap on every RPO. If the alley player is stacked inside the slot or the box is plus one, take the bubble on Split Bubble or Thunder Bubble. If he widens, hand it off on Bubble Dive or Zone Dive.
Use this set on second and medium and third and short where the run and RPO threat is live, then hit Boomerang PA Portland or Chip Corner Strike after the defense starts crashing the mesh and give reads.
Against single high, motion the outermost trips receiver and check the safety rotation. No rotation means Sluggo Seam, Slot Fade, or 22 Sluggo Verts to isolate the deep middle player one on one.
Against cover 2 or cover 4 shells, live on the intermediate crossers: Hi Lo Dig, Dig Cross, and Quick Unders create natural high low reads that punish flat footed zone droppers.
Hot route the off ball tight end to a drag or option on any Curls or Verticals concept to build a free man beater underneath, and keep HB Slip Screen and TE Screen in the rotation to punish users who vacate the middle chasing crossers.
