The Girlfriend's Guide to Football!

Monday, November 24, 2014

Differences in the NFL and College Fooball

There aren't that many differences in these two levels of the sport. There might be the occasional rule differences, like in college if the ball carriers knee hits the ground without anyone touching him then the play is over but in the NFL there has to be contact from the other team before the ball carrier is considered down. There are a few minor differences in rules but the main difference is the culture.

In college everyone is trying to make it to the next level while trying to get an education. But the main difference that college has over the NFL is that the fans have spirit. Mostly because college games are filled with college students and alumni members most people feel more connected with their school.

In the NFL every player has to be at the top of their game or in other words they always have to try to be the best.The main difference is that NFL players are professionals and they get paid to play the game they work so hard for. The NFL has great fans and the culture is great along with College Football but maybe some personal ties may be different depending on the fans.

Offensive Formationgs

On offense before the play starts the QB either snaps the ball from under center or from the shot gun formation. Shot gun formation is where the QB stands behind the center with the RB next to them. When the QB is under center there can be one or two running backs behind him. While in these formations the TE's and WR's can line up in a few spots.

http://www.electro-mech.com/team-sports/football/offensive-football-formations/

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Defensive Coverage's

Coverage's are basically assignments for linebackers and defensive backs so they know who or where to cover. Coverage's are called before the play, but they are only carried out if the play ends up being a pass. The term zone coverage literally means cover a zone. In zone, unlike man to man, a player is assigned a certain spot on the field to defend on a pass. There are a few zones and sometimes the jobs for defenders vary depending on how the offense lines up or how the defense is coached.

Most common coverages

Cover zero or man coverage: All DB's and LB's have are assigned to guard someone and if they have no one to guard then they react to the play accordingly.

Cover one: Cover one is where some players have a man to guard and others have a zone. In most cases, the two corners have a man to guard along with the strong safety. The LB's and FS's most likely drop into a zone.

Safeties

Safeties along with conrerbacks are DB's (defensive backs). The safety (S) has multiple job responsibilities on defense. They can play man to man, zone or free. But more importantly, they are the last line of defense to stop the offense because normally they are the furthest players back. To start the play most safeties start 10 to 15 yards off the ball and make adjustments depending on their assignment.

Two types of safeties:

Strong safety (SS): The strong safety plays on the strong side of the field or the side that has more offensive players. There job is to either guard a receiver, running back, or zone.

Free Safety (FS): The free safety plays on the weak side or the side with fewer offensive players. Often times they are free to move where they want depending on how the play is developed. For example if the QB starts to look at the receivers to his left then the FS will start to go that way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_(American_and_Canadian_football_position)

In the image above, the defense is in a 3-4 alignment because there are three linemen and four line backers. Cause there are only two corners there are two safeties to make 11 players. Because the TE on offense is on the right side of the formation the play is strong right. When the play is strong right, the SS is on the right while the free safety is on the left.

Cornerbacks

The cornerback (CB) is one of my favorite positions because it was one of the positions I played. Also I had a lot fun playing it. The CB has the job of guarding either a man (receiver) or a zone (a specific part of the field). There is going to be a zone coverage post coming soon to further explain.

The main goal of a CB is to guard a receiver by not letting them catch the ball by all means. Most of the time they play one on one against receivers but sometimes they get help from the safety. To start the play the CB has two options; either press coverage (play on the ball) to try to stop the receiver or play off the ball so they don't get beat with a deep pass. To play CB you have to be strong, quick, flexible, agile, aggressive, and smart.

Good corners have to have good technique! The stance before the play is very important especially in press coverage because if the CB is not balanced then they will get knocked down and beat off the ball.