Football Drills & Plays

When we are working on football tackling drills we always run a form tackle drill prior to a “live” tackle drill to refresh and promote proper form during “live” drills.

The form tackle drill we most often use is ball carrier and tackler approach each other at a 45 degree angle (ball in outside arm).   Tackler – breaks down, hits, wraps, lifts and drives/carries 5 yards at about 50%. The ball carrier is to stand tall and/or even jump or lift up to assist in the lift and carry.

If the player doesn’t break down and get low, they will not be able to lift.
If the kid doesn’t hit or make contact, they will not be able to wrap.
If the kid doesn’t wrap they will not be able to lift/carry.
Drive promotes running through the tackle and builds leg drive.

Note – we teach face mask on football – if the kid has their head on wrong side of the ball carrier, the ball carrier will often be upended or off balance making it tough to carry. This football drill will be very awkward or even impossible if kids are not using proper form.

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This is one of the football coaching exercises that can turn your youth football players into knockout linebackers. Give this a try for immediate results.

I went to the local paint shop and picked up some free 5 gallon buckets. Next, I filled the buckets with different amounts of water–about 1 gallon to 5 gallons.  I set up the buckets about 10 yards apart alternating the amount of water.

To begin the football drill/exercise I would have your player pick up the empty bucket (squat with his legs), “wrap up” the bucket, then carry it to the other end where he would squat to put it down and move to the 1 gallon bucket where he would squat, wrap up and carry the 10 yards to the other end and so on until he finished with the 5 gallons bucket.

This taught him to use his legs to explode out of his position and to tackle with great effectiveness. For little people, the diameter of the bucket is very similar to that of other children.

I also used the buckets to increase their leg power and balance by having the player to alternate 1 foot squats on the lid of the bucket. (one foot on top of the bucket, raise up, balance, both feet on top, opposite foot down… raise up…)

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If you are searching for football drills offensive line try this one we call Make 5-Lose 5.  It is a great football drill for team offense when you are working for play repetition and team discipline.

The offense goes against air and runs the called football play until the whistle.  Any player who blows an assignment, uses improper technique (when blocking air they really need to concentrate on proper angles, staying low, and proper hand placement) or doesn’t go until the whistle causes the team to have a negative play and the offense backs up 5 yards.

A 5 yard gain results when all 11 team members demonstrate proper technique, assignment and effort on any play.  The  football coaches keep track of how many plays it take for the offense to go from the 40 going in to the goal line.  A perfect score would be 8 plays.

This is also a good time to practice communication from the sideline to the huddle.  It can be used vs.a defense when your scout defense is weak enough that the offense can score even when they have missed assignments, poor technique, or poor effort.

This is also a good football conditioning drill when run while practicing your no huddle offense.

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If you are coaching youth football, I know you are continuously searching for drills and tips to keep your practices fresh.  Here are two football drills that work well for me.  Give them a try and let me know how they work for you.

This first football drill is for defensive backs:

Starting at the top left corner
1.Begin by sprinting to top right corner
2.Back peddle down to lower right corner
3.Shuffle to the lower left corner
4. Sprint back up to top left corner
5.Sprint diagonally to lower right corner
6.Repeat drill 3 times

Note: You can use cones and space them 7 yards apart across the top and 5 yards apart along the side.

The second drill is aimed on improving our RB to WR exchange for reverses.

I break my team into 2 teams.  Each team will get into two lines spaced about 15 yards apart and facing each other with 2 or 3 kids in each line.  One player runs at the other and they work on exchanging the football cleanly.  I will also put a string on the ground to assure proper spacing so that they don’t run into each other.

The football team that goes through a cycle with no drops and clean hand-offs wins.

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My tip of the day may seem too fundamental for some but if you’re working with young or inexperienced football players, it is excellent!  Football fundamentals are essential with these players.

At this level, you may experience linemen standing up before making a block. This is a particular problem on run plays but also impairs pass blocking.

We use a football drill to correct this. We have players get in the wrestling position (on all 4s) and then on the snap count, reach forward to hit a blocking pad with their hands while their knees remain stationary.

This drill has worked wonders for our team. The players get used to the feel of making contact in a low position and then in live situations have much greater strength and control over their opponent.

A similar football drill can be used for backs who run straight up. This helps them get used to making low contact with their body when carrying the ball.

Technorati Tags: football, Football fundamentals, football drill