Training Drills

Conditioning Drills

Conditioning in football is important as it can help us to react quickly on the field by moving in a variety of directions. The conditioning drills will help players quickly change directions on the field. Firstly the players must be placed in a small four square box. Then the player will proceed to jump from one area or box to another, thus forcing the player to jump frontwards, backwards, laterally and diagonally. Other trick is that we can made changes can which is the player will only use one foot and then use the other foot while they run the drill.

Line of Scrimmage Drills

Strategic advantage over your opponents is important of whether you are on offense or defense play. One of a great technique that will give you an advantage on the line is double team blocking. The strategy can be described as putting a hole in the line of scrimmage as two easily overpowers one. The strategy can be done by: Firstly, players need to step together, and second locking hips. Next, the players must form a wall, an impenetrable block that the opposing teams' linemen can't break. Concentrate on this wall so that the opponent cannot duck around or go through the double team. Most importantly, this manoeuvre (steps) needs to be happen quickly and efficiently.

Good Hand-off Skill Drills

Learning the basics in a hand-off is important to a strong offense. Running backs should constantly practice the hand off as they are the essential part of the defense. One of the great hands off drill is: Firstly the team must have two separate lines of players facing each other which are line A and line B. One player leaves line A with the football and runs towards line B. In sync with that first player, a second player leaves line B, when they meet player A passes to player B. Now player B has the ball and will hand off the ball to the next person in Line A who will hand off to the next player in Line B. The motion should be constantly moving from one line to another in this drill, almost like a juggling pattern. This drill should be practised every day to ensure that the running backs are effective on their hand offs.

American Football Protective Equipment

American Football protective equipment is really important for football players as it helps to protect the body during football games. Basic equipments worn by almost all football players are:-

Helmet

The helmet has evolved a lot. It was originally made of leather. Nowadays, the helmet is really improved and is taking modern technology to protect the health of the players.  A more recent addition to the football helmet is a visor or eyeshield, traditionally used to protect players from eye injuries or glare.

The helmet is the same for any player but the face mask can vary much depending on the position of the player. It is clear that certain players need more protection and others need more space to view the field. New design for the helmet includes an integrated faceguard featuring shock absorbing "Energy Wedges" that reduce the force of impacts to the faceguard.

There are several distinct parts of professional football helmet which are the shell, jaw pads and air bladders, face mask, chin strap, and mouth guard. The shell is constructed of hard plastic with thick padding on the inside, a face mask made of one or more metal bars, and a chinstrap used to secure the helmet. Although they are protective, players can and do still suffer head injuries such as concussion.

Shoulder pads

Shoulder pads is important for a football player as they will help to absorb some of the shock of impact through deformation (the pads at the shoulders are strung on tight webbing and deform on impact) and they will also distribute the shock through a larger area so there is less pressure at the point of impact.

The shoulder pads are made of a hard plastic outer shell with shock-absorbing foam padding underneath. The pads fit over the shoulders and the chest and rib area, and are secured with various snaps and buckles. Various styles of shoulder pads exist for different positions played. Pads for linemen are designed with few flaps and epaulets, thus reducing the opportunity for being grabbed by the opposition. On the other hand, pads for a quarterback are lightweight and offer freedom of movement.

Shoes

Shoes are worn depending on the turf on which the game is played. If it is nice weather typical cleats are thick on the outside and thin on the inside of the bottom of the shoe. ON the other hand, during rainy weather, football players will use longer and thicker cleats to allow good grip on the wet grass.

Gloves

Gloves also can be worn. Usually there are 2 types of gloves that the football players wear. The types are sticky in the palm who usually being used by receiver, or thickly protective for the linemen. The gloves worn by linemen usually are lined with very thick padding to better protect fingers and hands, which sometimes are caught in an opponent's face mask or are stepped on.

Position (Special Teams)

The special teams units that are involved in kickoff, punt, and field goal plays comprise the third "phase" of the game. The squad's kicker and punter are extremely skilled at kicking for length, height, and/or accuracy, which no other players on the team are usually able to do. Punt and kickoff return units use a swift player referred to as a return man to take the ball back as far as he can and negate some punt or kick yards. All other players on a special team will block, tackle, or halt ball movement depending on exactly what team it is and where the ball is at the moment. 

The special teams comprise of:-

Gunner

Gunner is the members of the special teams who specialize in racing downfield to tackle the kick or punt returner. The gunners usually line up on the outside of the offensive line and are often double teamed by blockers. 

Holder

Holder is the player who catches the snap from the center and places it down for the placekicker to attempt to kick it through the uprights of the goalpost. On an attempted field goal, the holder must catch the ball and put it into a good kicking position, ideally with the laces facing away from the kicker. 

Kick Returner

A kick returner job is to catch kickoffs and try to get as far down the field as possible. He is usually one of the faster players on the team, often a reserve wide receiver. 

Long Snapper

The center position as it would be played on offense, but this player specializes in making longer snaps for punts and field goal attempts. A long-snapper generally has to snap the ball seven-to-eight yards behind him for field goal attempts and 13 to 15 yards for punts with the accuracy that allows the holder or punter to handle the ball cleanly. 

Placekicker

Placekicker is the player who kicks the ball on kickoffs, field goal attempts, and extra point attempts. A placekicker either kicks the ball while it's being held by a teammate or kicks it off a tee. 

Punter

Punter is a player who stands behind the line of scrimmage, catches the long snap from the center, and then kicks the ball after dropping it toward his foot. The punter generally comes in on fourth down to drop kicks the ball in a punt play to get the defending team away from their inzone.

Punt Returner

Punt returner job is to catch the ball after it has been punted and run it back toward the punting team's end zone.

Position (defensive)

Defensive Lineman

Defensive linemen, linebackers, and defensive backs make up a club's defense. Depending on the defensive coordinator's inclination, a team will use either four linemen and three linebackers, or the reverse.

Since there are usually fewer players on the defensive line than on the offensive line, a player at a different defensive position will oftentimes get involved in the trenches as well. Without a defensive line to put pressure on the Quarterback, it would be much easier for him to make a play and score more points.

Following are the defensive football positions.

Defensive Tackle

Defensive player are located on the inside of the usual four man line up for the defense. The duties of a defensive tackle include stopping the running back on running plays, getting pressure up the middle on passing plays, and occupying blockers so the linebackers can roam free.

Defensive Ends.

Defensive end: Two players are placed in position and their responsibility is to break through the offensive line in order to tackle the quarter back when he is planning to pass, or tackle the running back if it is passed to him. They are placed on opposite edges of defensive line.

Linebacker
Linebacker is a defensive player who lines up behind the defensive linemen and in front of the defensive backfield. The linebackers are a team's second line of defense. Each team has two outside linebackers. They are responsible for any running back that gets pas the defensive ends or tackles. They also cover short passes made over that defensive line

Cornerback

Cornerback is a defensive back who generally lines up on the outside of the formation and their main task is to prevent successful passes. They accomplish this task by throwing the ball away from receivers or else by catching ball by themselves.

Safety
Safety is a defensive back who lines up in the secondary between, but generally deeper than the cornerbacks. Players in this position are placed at the last. They mainly assist cornerback with large pass coverage.

Position (Offensive)

The positions of players in football depend on whether a team is defense or offense. The job of the offensive line is to collectively protect the Quarterback from the players on the opposing team's defense. As soon as the Center hands the ball off, the defense is going to try to tackle the Quarterback before he can make a play. Without any protection, the offense is not going to have much success scoring any points.

Following are the offensive positions in football.

Center

The player in center position has the function of hiking (or snaps) the ball to the quarterback at the start of each play. The center lines up in the middle of the offensive line, between the offensive guards. He will also try to protect the quarterback from the opposing team’s defense.

Offensive guard

This position has two players on every play, and they line up on either side of the offensive center. Their primary task is to top both passing and running plays.

Offensive tackle

There are two tackles on every play, and they line up on the outside of the offensive guards. Their primary task is to block the opposing team from tackling the quarterback, and open up areas for the running back to get through.

Tight end

Tight end is an offensive player who serves as a receiver and also a blocker. The tight end lines up beside the offensive tackle either to the right or to the left of the quarterback. There are types of tight end which are the flanker lines and split end lines.

Wide receiver

Players in this position are speedy pass-catching experts and their primary task is to receive the ball on a passing play.

Full Back

The players here are positioned behind the quarterback and their job is to block the halfback. Fullbacks are usually bigger than halfbacks, and also serve as short-yardage runners.

Halfback
An offensive player who lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. A running back's primary role is to run with the football, he is also used as a receiver at times which they usually will try to catch the short passes when necessary.

Quarterback
The quarterback is the offensive leader. It is his job to call the plays, and execute them. Quaterback will receives the ball from the center at the start of each play before either handing it to the running back, throwing it to a receiver, or running with it himself. The quarterback can also seize the opportunity to run the ball himself if the play or the situation calls for it. 

Scoring System

Similar to most major sports, the objective of American Football is for one team to score more points than the other team. There are several ways to accumulate the points that make up the final score. The descriptions are:-

TOUCHDOWN = 6 POINTS

A touchdown is the biggest single score in a football game. It is also the biggest goal for an offense. Touchdown is worth six points, and it allows the scoring team an opportunity to attempt to get an extra point. To score a touchdown, a player must carry the ball across the opposition's goal line, or catch a pass in the end zone.

EXTRA POINT and the TWO-POINT CONVERSION = 1 or 2 POINTS

Immediately following a touchdown, the ball is placed at the opponent's two-yard line, where the offense has two options which whether to add one or two more points. The first option is attempting to kick the ball between the opponent's goal posts which the team will get an extra point to their score. It is also called the point after touchdown, conversion or PAT.

If a team elects to go for two extra points, they will line up at the two-yard line and make one attempt at either running or passing the ball into the end zone as the same manner of scoring a touchdown. If they make it, they are awarded two points. If they don't, they get no extra points. Since going for two points is more difficult than kicking an extra point, the offense generally chooses to kick the extra point.

FIELD GOAL = 3 POINTS

If the offense is unable to get into the end zone, it may try to kick a field goal. Field goals are worth three points and often are the deciding plays in the last seconds of close games. They can be attempted from anywhere on the field on any down. Usually a placekicker will attempt to kick the field goals if only he feels that they are close enough to the opposition goalpost. Successful field goals are when the football goes between the upright bars of the goal post.

SAFETY = 2 POINTS

A team can also pick up two points by tackling an opponent ball carrier in his own goal line. The defensive team will then be given possession of the ball. The two points is called a safety.

In Summary:
Touchdown = 6 points
Extra Point Conversion = 1 point
Two-Point Conversion = 2 points
Field Goal = 3 points
Safety= 2 points

American Football Field

Learning the exact dimensions of the field is not necessarily that important, but it is good to have a basic knowledge of the field itself.  National Football League (NFL) or Professional has its own measurement and dimensions of the field. An official sized field is 120 yards for the length and 53 and 1/3 yards or 160' for the width.  In contrast to baseball, these dimensions can't be modified to fit the available playing area.

It has stripes running across the field at five-yard intervals. There are shorter lines, called hash marks, marking each one-yard interval. The hash marks of NFL are the thinnest among all of the levels of football game. It measure about 70' and 9" from the side lines and are about 18' and 6" in width. On each end of the playing field is an end zone (red section with diagonal lines) which extends ten yards.

End zones are ten yards deep. The end line border is 6'and it marks the end zone's back. Team benches are set next to the restraining line which is between the 30 yard markers. NFL field numbers are about 6' in length and 4' in width. All NFL fields have a 6' restraining line next to the side lines. These lines mark the closest area non-players can be to the football field.

Located on the very back line of each end zone is a goal post. The goal post of NFL is about 10' in length and 18' and 6" in width. The spot where the end zone meets the playing field is called the goal line. The yardage from the goal line is marked at ten-yard intervals, up to the 50-yard line, which is in the center of the field. After reaching the 50-yard line, the yardage markers start to descend (40, 30, 20, 10) every ten yards until they reach the opposite goal line.