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Quick Reference
In 1 playbook
Breakdown
Bubble Screen out of Singleback Y Trips is a quick-hitting screen pass designed to get the ball to the slot receiver in the trips bunch with blockers releasing in front of him. The outside trips receivers stalk block or crack down on the nearest defenders while the slot man bubbles out behind the line of scrimmage as the primary and often only real read. This is a zone beater at its core, punishing off-coverage and soft zone drops by defenders who bail at the snap instead of squatting on short routes, and it also serves as a built-in answer to overaggressive edge blitzes since the ball gets out before the rush arrives.
Defensive Reads
Pre-snap, check the alignment of the slot corner or nickel defender over the trips bunch, if he is playing seven yards deep or bailing into a zone drop this play is live Watch for a defensive end or outside linebacker crashing hard upfield off the edge, since that aggression opens the exact lane the perimeter blockers need to spring the bubble Post-snap, key any user-controlled defender who stays low and reads the quarterback's eyes instead of biting on run action, that player is the biggest threat to jump the throw and take it the other way Cover 2 and Cover 4 shells with underneath defenders sitting flat-footed in short zones shut this down fast because the numbers advantage disappears when a defender is already sitting in the bubble window Man coverage with a press corner on the slot receiver and a linebacker spying underneath kills this play, since there is no natural blocking angle to clear the initial contact
Usage Tips
Throw this immediately off the snap once you confirm the slot corner or overhang defender is not sitting in the bubble area, since any hesitation lets a lurking linebacker close the throwing lane
Use this against defenses that show soft zone shells like Cover 3 or Cover 4 where the underneath defenders bail into deep drops and leave the flat wide open
Call this on early downs or short yardage to stay ahead of schedule, then pair it with HB Slip Screen or WR Screen from this same set to keep defenders guessing about which screen concept is coming
If the defense shows man coverage with the slot corner pressed and squatting on the trips side, check to Curls or Stick in this playbook instead since the bubble has no room to develop
Combine this with Four Verticals or Sluggo Seam as a hard counter after running the bubble a few times, since defenders will start jumping the screen and open up vertical shots behind them
