--- title: "Flag Football Trick Plays: 4 Legal Calls and When to Use" description: "Flag football trick plays that stay legal: hook and lateral, reverse, double pass and a QB throwback, with alignments, rule checks and when to call each." url: "https://www.coachboard.app/library/flag-football/trick-plays" sport: "Flag Football" category: "Tactic" level: "intermediate" dateModified: "2026-09-24" --- # Flag Football Trick Plays — Flag Football Tactic Flag football trick plays are designed misdirection calls, such as a reverse, a double pass or a QB throwback, that show the defense a familiar play and then attack the space its reaction leaves behind. A trick play only works because of the play it imitates. If your team never runs a sweep, a reverse off a fake sweep fools nobody; if your QB never hands off, the throwback has no bait. So install these after the base plays are running cleanly, and call them when the defense has started jumping those base plays. Legality is the other half of the job. Every league allows one forward pass per down, thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, but rules on laterals, pitches and handoffs vary. NFL FLAG allows handoffs and unlimited backward pitches and passes behind the line of scrimmage, but none once the ball is past it, while many rec leagues allow laterals anywhere on the field. Read your rulebook before you draw any of these four flag football trick plays. ## Objective Add four legal misdirection plays to a flag offense, each built off a base play the defense has already seen, with a clear rule check and a game situation for calling it. ## Setup - **Area:** Full game field; rehearse on the 5v5 NFL FLAG field (70 × 30 yards) or your league's dimensions - **Players:** 5–7 on offense depending on format; a full defense for live reps - **Equipment:** 1 ball, Flag belts, Cones for the line of scrimmage and no-run zones - **Duration:** 15 minutes per practice, one trick play at a time - **Level:** intermediate (U10+) ## How it works 1. **Hook and lateral (leagues that allow laterals)** — Twins right. The outside receiver runs a 6 yard hook; the slot runs an arrow underneath him toward the sideline, trailing by 3 yards. The QB throws the hook. As the defender closes, the hook receiver tosses the ball backward to the trailing slot, who is already running upfield. Only call it where laterals beyond the line are legal; NFL FLAG does not allow them, so there run the hook alone. 2. **Reverse off the sweep** — Run your normal sweep look: the back takes the handoff going left. The right receiver takes two steps upfield, then comes back behind the line and takes a second handoff from the back going right. Defenders who flowed to the sweep are now on the wrong side. Every handoff must happen behind the line. 3. **Double pass** — The QB throws a backward pass to a receiver standing 2 yards behind the line near the sideline, who looks like he is catching a quick screen. Defenders rush up; he sets and throws forward to a receiver running a go down the far seam. NFL FLAG allows this because the backward pass happens behind the line; the second, forward pass must also be thrown from behind the line. 4. **Fake handoff and QB throwback** — The QB fakes a handoff to the back, then hands off for real to a receiver coming across on a jet path and releases into the flat. The runner stops behind the line, turns and throws across the field to the QB, who is often left uncovered past the line. In NFL FLAG the QB becomes a legal receiver once the ball has been handed off. ## Coaching points - Sell the base play: the sweep runner and the QB must carry out their fakes at full speed or the defense never bites. - Rehearse handoffs until they are clean, because a dropped exchange behind the line is a dead ball or a turnover depending on the league. - Call a trick play after the defense has overplayed the base play for two or three snaps, not on the first drive. - Avoid the no-run zones for any trick play that relies on a runner; only the passing versions are allowed there. ## Variations - **Fake reverse pass** — Run the reverse action, but the reversing receiver pulls up and throws deep to the original back, who slipped out after handing off. It punishes defenses that chased the first reverse. - **Center throwback** — The QB throws a backward pass on the screen look to the flat receiver standing behind the line, who then throws forward to the center running down the middle. Legal in NFL FLAG as long as both throws happen behind the line. The center is rarely the first player defenders account for. ## Build it in Coach Board Build the base sweep and the reverse on two Coach Board boards with identical starting spots, then play them back one after the other so players see how the first seconds match. Slow the second handoff down, loop it until the timing clicks, and keep the trick plays in their own playbook section so they stay a surprise. [Flag Football coaching app](https://www.coachboard.app/sports/flag-football) · [Start 14-day free trial, no card](https://my.coachboard.app) ## FAQ ### Are laterals legal in flag football? It depends on the league. NFL FLAG allows handoffs and backward pitches or passes only behind the line of scrimmage, never past it, while many recreational and adult leagues allow laterals anywhere on the field. Every format allows only one forward pass per down, thrown from behind the line, so check the rulebook first. ### When should you call a trick play in flag football? Call a trick play once the defense has shown it is overplaying the base play it copies, usually after two or three snaps of that look. Good spots are midfield on first down or a short field with points available, not a must-convert down where a lost exchange ends the drive. ## Related - https://www.coachboard.app/library/flag-football/5v5-plays.md - https://www.coachboard.app/library/flag-football/formations.md - https://www.coachboard.app/library/flag-football/routes.md --- [Flag Football coaching app](https://www.coachboard.app/sports/flag-football) · Animate and share this tactic with your team: https://my.coachboard.app