Playbooks
At a Glance
Overview
Y Trips Close Wing is the compressed trips look inside Singleback, and it plays very differently from spread sets like Wide or Doubles. You get 11 personnel with the tight end aligned tight to the formation and a wing off his hip, creating a three man surface to the strong side while the single receiver isolates on the backside. Because the trips bunch sits close to the tackle instead of out near the numbers, defenders are forced to either cluster bodies into the box or walk a safety down, which immediately tells you what coverage shell you are facing before the snap.
Strengths
- Compressed trips alignment creates natural traffic on Mesh and Slot Drive, making man coverage a nightmare when defenders try to trail through the wash
- Smash and Curls X-Choice punish Cover 2 and Cover 4 with high low reads to the trips side while the isolated X works in space against a single cornerback
- Heavy play action menu (Mtn PA Boot Rt, Jet PA Sprint RT, Jet PA Wide Zone, PA Switch WR In) sells the inside run and gets your quarterback outside the pocket with a clean flood read
- Jet motion plays force the defense to flow and expose overpursuing user-controlled linebackers, and the Gadget tag gives you misdirection without changing personnel
- Run game (HB Dive, HB Stretch, HB Zone Wk, Jet Wide Zone) gets extra bodies at the point of attack because the wing and tight end both block from tight alignments
Weaknesses
- Compressed formation shrinks the field, so flat and curl routes break into congested space where a single user defender can cover two routes at once
- Tight alignment invites edge pressure and overload blitzes to the wing side, and the HB is often your only free blocker on drop back concepts
- Backside X receiver is isolated with no help, so a good opponent presses him and rolls coverage strong to smother the trips side
- Play action plays leave the quarterback exposed to interior pressure since the offensive line commits to run blocking before rotating
- Limited vertical spacing means deep concepts like Mtn X-Go Dig need extra time, which you will not get against nano blitz looks
Usage Tips
Read the trips side pre snap: if the defense only puts two defenders over three receivers, hit Slot Drive or Mesh and let the crossers work behind the underneath coverage
Against Cover 3 or single high, run Smash and hot route the inside trips receiver to a corner or a streak to attack the vacated hole between the cornerback and safety
Use HB Dive and HB Stretch early to make the defense respect the tight surface, then come back with Mtn PA Boot Rt or Jet PA Sprint RT on the same down and distance
In third and medium, run Curls X-Choice and user the isolated X on his choice route while the trips side curls occupy the zone defenders
When you see heavy pressure or a stacked box, call HB Slip Screen and let the trips alignment give you instant blockers in front of the ball
