Buzz, buzz, buzz—
Above the eardrum, there was a roar.
Derrick Henry couldn't believe his eyes as he looked toward the field—on the brink of elimination in a playoff game, Li Wei had actually pulled a trick play, an audacious move that completely toyed with the Tennessee Titans' defensive group.
Trick play is a major characteristic of football.
The key lies in the word "Trick".
This word can be interpreted as prank, sleight, deceit, feigning, ingenuity, and so on. Every Halloween, when children knock on doors asking for candy, the chant "trick or treat" signifies the "Trick".
Applied in the thick strategic playbooks of football, it can be understood as deception in warfare, but to put it more vividly, it's showboating.
It involves the unexpected choice of tactical combinations within the boundaries of football rules:
For instance, an offensive tackle becoming an eligible receiver—but they must notify the head referee.
