Explaining (American) Football

Can the ball only be passed once per play?

Originally posted by treetalk
Can the ball only be passed once per play?

That's correct. One forward pass per play, and it cannot be attempted once the ball is brought forward of the line of scrimmage (point where the play originally began).

i have watched about 5 miunutes of a game once

there were two lines of people tackling each other

there were other players running downfield to catch throws from QB
(recievers?)

are these players allowed to be tackled with out the ball

Originally posted by srenfrey
i have watched about 5 miunutes of a game once

there were two lines of people tackling each other

there were other players running downfield to catch throws from QB
(recievers?)

are these players allowed to be tackled with out the ball

First, let me make sure you have an accurate defintion of the word "tackle". Legally, only the ballcarrier can be tackled. What you saw between the two different lines of players wasn't tackling, it was blocking. One line of players (the offensive line) was blocking the other line of players (defensive line) to prevent them from getting to the ball carrier. As for the receivers downfield, they can't be tackled without the ball either, and they can't be interfered with in any way before the ball gets to them. This is called pass interference, and you could easily write 4 pages defining what is pass interference and what isn't.

It is also possible for the receiver to commit offensive pass interference. The defender has just as much right as the receiver to try to catch a ball, so the receiver cannot push him off the ball to prevent him from cathing it.

ok then

explain to me difference between blocking and tackling

Originally posted by srenfrey
ok then

explain to me difference between blocking and tackling

Here goes: tackling means bringing the ball carrier to the ground, pushing him out of bounds, or stopping his forward progress.

Blocking is the means by which offensive players try to prevent defenders from getting to the ball carrier. For lack of a better way of explaining it, they basically get in the way of the defending players to make it harder for them to tackle the ball carrier. But there are limitations to what the offensiv e players can do when they block. They cannot grab ahold of the defender, and they cannot block into the back of the defender. Both of these will result in penalties.

Originally posted by blade68
alas, all you have done with your sarcasm is confirm my early thoughts.... the game is watched by people with no sense of humour.

What a genius observation! 🙄

Guys, been a tad busy bit thanks for the great explanations!!

So anyone up for the defensive formations!!! 😳

Originally posted by Natural Science
But there are limitations to what the offensiv e players can do when they block. They cannot grab ahold of the defender, and they cannot block into the back of the defender. Both of these will result in penalties.

What happens if they try running backwards? Just a thought 🙂

Originally posted by mtthw
What happens if they try running backwards? Just a thought 🙂

I suppose he could try that...but then there'd probably be no need to block him. 😀

Originally posted by Tengu
Guys, been a tad busy bit thanks for the great explanations!!

So anyone up for the defensive formations!!! 😳

Okay, here goes. First, a break down of the defensive positions.

Defensive linemen Normally the biggest defensive players on the field, they will line up at the line of scrimmage across from the offensive line. They will be the first ones to engage the offensive line in attempts to get through to the ballcarrier.

Linebackers The linebackers are the midfield defenders. They are generally faster and more athletic, but smaller than defensive linemen. They help out the defensive line on running plays, and also can drop into coverage against the tight end or a running back coming out of the backfiled. (dropping into coverage means stepping back to cover a potential receiver, to prevent him from catching a pass from the quarterback) They are generally not suited to cover wide receivers, as they are not fast enough. The offense will often try to exploit this potential mismatch. There are diffent types of linebacker (inside linebacker, outside linebacker) but we won't get into that here.

Cornerbacks The cornerbacks line up directly across from the wide receivers, and their primary responsibility is to cover the wide receviers. They are very similar in athletic ability and speed to the wide receivers. They will attempt to break up passes thrown to the recievers (to break up a pass means to prevent the receiver from catching it) or intercept the pass. There is an old sayng in football that if you're fast, but you can't catch, you become a cornerback. They will also help out on running plays, especially plays that are run to sidelines.

Safties The safeties are essentially the last line of defense. They play behind the linebackers. They assist the cornerbacks in coverage. Safeties are a bit bigger and not as fast as cornerbacks, but they hit harder. They will also come up to the line to help out on running plays. The quarterback will sometimes try a fake handoff to get the safety to "bite" (make him commit to the run). If it works, a wide receiver can get by the safety and get open for a big gain.

I'll get into formations in the next post.

Formations: most teams in the NFL play either a 4-3 or a 3-4. I'll explain the difference.

4-3 The 4-3 means the defense is playing with 4 down linemen (another name for defensive linemen, because they line up in a 3-point stance at the line of scrimmage) and 3 linebackers. It's the most common defensive formation in the NFL, set up to defend against the run or the pass. The other defensive players are 2 cornerbacks and 2 safties.

3-4 The 3-4 means 3 down linemen, and 4 linebackers. This sacrifices some size up front, in favor of more speed. Now, normally, a defensive team will rush 4 defenders at the quarterback. In a 4-3, this is normally the 4 down linemen. In a 3-4, they will still rush 4 players, but one of them will be a linebacker. So the advantage is that the offense gernerally doesn't know which of the 4 linebackers will be rushing. More teams in the NFL are using the 3-4 because of this, or simply because they have more depth at linebacker than on the defensive line, and want their best players on the field.

nickel In a nickel package, the defense will sub out one of its linebackers in favor of another defensive back (typically another cornerback, but sometimes another safety). It is called the nickel because the defense now has 5 defensive backs on the field. (The safeties and cornerbacks are collectively called defensive backs, also called the secondary). The nickel gives the defense better pass coverage, at the expense of being a bit more vulnerable to the run. This package is typically used when a running play is unlikely to be called (such as 3rd down, with a lot of yardage to gain), although teams with especially high-powered passing attacks, like the Indianapolis Colts, can force teams into nickel coverage on 1st down, thus opening up the running game. Defenses gernally go into a nickel when the offense subs in a 3rd wide receiver.

dime The dime package goes one step further than nickel; another linebacker is subbed out, in favor of another defensive back. So now there are 6 defensive backs on the field. Obviously, better ability to cover receivers, at the danger of being even more succeptible to the run. A defense will likely go into a dime against a 4-wide receiver set.

quareter Same as dime, with yet another defensive back in place of a linebacker. Typically only used when the offense has to gain a large amount of yards very quickly (such as, during the last minute of play) when gains of 10-15 yards won't hurt the defense. Sometimes known as the Prevent defense, but there is an old joke that all it does is prevent the team that uses it from winning the game.

There are other, less common formations such as the 5-2 and the 46, but I won't get into these unless someone asks for them. A few more notes: While teams generally send 4 defenders at the quarterback, they could send more. Rushing the quarterback with more than 4 pass rushers is called blitzing. An effective blitz can hurry a quarterback and force him to make a bad throw, or it can enable the defense to get to the quarterback and tackle him behind the line of scrimmage (called a quarterback sack). But if the blitz is picked up, the quarterback will probably have a receiver open because there aren't as many players in pass coverage. An all-out blitz is when all front 7 players (linemen and linebackers) rush the quarterback, leaving only the defensive backs in coverage. This puts enormous pressure on quarterback, but if he can make his reads quickly he is guaranteed to find somebody wide open. So blitzing can be seen generally as feast-or-famine.

One thing I forgot to mention: while the offense must have 7 players on the line of scrimmage, the defense has no such restrictions. They can put as many or as few defenders on the line of scrimmage as they want.

Originally posted by srenfrey
ok then

explain to me difference between blocking and tackling

Tackling stops the offensive player from gaining further yardage and ends the play. Blocking (offensive line blocks defensive line) is meant to stop the defensive players from tackling the ball carrier, that way, the ball carrier gains yardage.

Originally posted by treetalk
Can the ball only be passed once per play?

Yes - 90 % of the time.

There is something called a lateral and a pitch. A lateral is when you are past the line of scrimmage, and you throw the ball to someone BEHIND you. You cannot throw the ball forward once you pass the line. Laterals are rare, and risky ( fumbles likely with laterals)
A pitch (similar to lateral) is when the quarterback (passer) throws the ball to his running back to behind the line of scrimmage.

(FUMBLE - when a player drops the ball. The ball falls on the field. Any team can grab the ball, and it is a turnover if the defense recovers the fumbled ball.)

100 yard field. You have 4 (strategically 3) attempts (plays/downs) to get 10 yards. If you get 10 yards with 4 (typically 3 - not usual to go for 4th) plays, you get a new set of "downs" - you have another 4 plays to get 10 yards.

Anyone who is new to the game of football "americano" you would be EXTREMELY smart if you comitted to becoming a St. Louis Rams football fan. Just post if you want to become a Rams fan, and I'll let you know more about them. Seriously, I'm not misleading you. Do not listen to anyone who tries to set you back against the Rams. Honest.