also: draw play · quarterback draw · lead draw
A run disguised as a pass. The line pass protects, the quarterback drops, and the ball is handed off after the defense has already committed to rushing.
The offensive line sets as though pass protecting, the quarterback drops back, and the ball is handed to a back after the defense has committed to a pass rush. It works on the defense's own aggression: pass rushers running upfield have taken themselves out of run gaps, and linebackers dropping into coverage have vacated the middle.
This is why it is a situational call rather than a base run. It needs the defense to believe a pass is coming, which means it is a second-and-long and third-and-long play. It stops working entirely against a defense that is not rushing hard.
draw playplay action, isoA draw and play action are opposite deceptions and are sometimes muddled. A draw is a run that looks like a pass. Play action is a pass that looks like a run.