Equipment Needed
- Football
- Cones to mark the formation
Mark the formation
Cones make it fast to reset a clean trips formation between reps so every receiver lines up in the right spot.
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- Set up three receivers in a trips formation to one side with a quarterback in shotgun.
- Add defensive backs matched up to test the spacing live once the concept is understood.
Instructions
- Run a triangle route concept: the outside receiver goes vertical, the middle receiver runs a quick out, and the inside receiver runs a shallow drag.
- The quarterback reads high-to-low or based on the defense's leverage, progressing through the three options.
- Deliver the ball to whichever route the coverage leaves open based on the defensive shell.
- Rotate which receiver runs which route so everyone understands all three jobs.
Coaching Points
- The spacing between the three routes (vertical, intermediate, shallow) is what creates the defensive conflict — keep the depths distinct.
- The quarterback's read progression should be practiced and consistent, not random guessing.
- Route runners need to sell the route stem the same way regardless of which concept is called, so the defense can't jump the route pre-snap.
- This concept specifically punishes both man and zone coverage differently — discuss both reads with the group.
Variation
Add a fourth receiver to create a different formation concept, or run it against disguised coverages to test the quarterback's post-snap read.