A pass rushing defensive lineman needs to get his hands in the air to cover potential passing lanes for the QB. As a highschool football coach, this drill is great to help your defensive linemen.
What you need – You can run this football drill with a defensive lineman, and a coach on a tackling dummy, or with and offensive lineman. You will need a quarterback or a coach who will throw the ball.
How this drill works – To start, you might just want to run this drill with a coach or another player on the tackling dummy. It is a little easier that way, until a defensive lineman can learn to read the play and then make the appropriate reaction.
On the snap of the ball, the defensive lineman will rush (3/4 speed) to the tackling dummy. The dummy will push back to simulate an offensive lineman blocking. The quarterback will take a three step drop and throw the ball in the direction of the defensive lineman.
Although the idea of this drill is not to necessarily knock the ball down, it is to help defensive lineman read where the ball is going to go, and then get the timing down for putting their hands up in the air.
To add difficulty to the drill, you can have an offensive lineman there, trying to protect the QB and trying to keep the defender’s hands down.
Result – A good defensive lineman can anticipate when the ball is going to be thrown by the way a QB sets up in the pocket. While rushing the passer, the DL needs to be wary of this, and close off passing opportunities by raising his hands.
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