Playbooks
PA Read out of Shotgun Y Trips is a play-action passing concept built off a run fake to sell the linebackers and safeties before the QB works his progression. With trips to one side, the concept gives the quarterback a clear high-low or in-out read against both man and zone shells, making it a solid play-action based man and zone beater rather than a pure blitz beater. The primary read starts with the trips side, working from the deep route to the underneath breaking route, then resets to the backside single receiver or check-down option if the play fake does not fully commit the second level defenders.
Read the linebacker depth immediately after the snap. If they bite hard on the run fake and drop their eyes, the underneath and intermediate windows on the trips side open up fast. Identify man versus zone by watching the trips side defenders at the snap. If they turn and run with receivers immediately, it is likely man coverage and the deep route should win one on one against a slower defender. Watch for a user controlled defender sitting in a lurk spot near the trips concept, since a smart user will bait the play fake and then jump the intermediate route. Cover 3 with a fast flowing linebacker to the trips side can shut this play down quickly, since that defender can rob the underneath break while the deep safety cleans up over the top. Heavy blitz packages with quick pressure off the edge, especially nano blitzes, beat this concept before the play fake even finishes selling, so protect the quarterback with a chip or hot route the running back into a check-down.
Use PA Read on early downs like first and ten or second and short when defenses expect run action, since the play fake needs linebackers stepping up to be effective.
Check the safety alignment pre-snap. Two high safeties usually mean the defense is sitting on the pass and may not respect the run fake, so consider hot routing the trips receivers into quicker breaking routes.
Against single high looks, trust the run fake more and expect the play-action to hold the strong safety or a linebacker just long enough to open a window on the deep trips route.
Pair this play with Stick in your play-calling sequence. Stick shows the same personnel and formation but attacks underneath zones quickly, which keeps the defense honest and unsure whether to sit on the pass or respect the run fake on PA Read.
Mix in Power Read from the same set to build run tendency, then call PA Read once the defense starts crashing down on run fits, since the play fake becomes far more effective once linebackers are conditioned to attack downhill.