Top 5 At-Home Football Drills

Looking for at-home football drills? Here are our top 5 – with a focus on speed and agility, ballhandling, and throwing accuracy.

Each one can be done right in your back yard,  all by yourself or with a partner.

For a complete workout, perform three sets of each drill for 30 seconds each – 15 sets in total. Start slow, then speed up once you’ve mastered the mechanics.

#5.  Hex Jumps

Purpose

To improve footwork, reaction time and agility.

How it Works

1. Using tape or chalk, create a hexagon with all 6 sides measuring 1 foot long. Player starts off inside hexagon.
2. Starting from an athletic stance with the knees bent and weight on the balls of their feet, the player will begin the drill by jumping over the line in front and immediately jumping back into the middle of the hexagon.
3. Player then jumps diagonally over the top right line of the hexagon before jumping back into the middle.
4. Player continues, jumping over each line and back to the center all around the hexagon clockwise.
5. After one full rotation, player cycles back around counter clockwise.
6. Continue for 45 seconds, take a 30 second rest and repeat.

Coaching Tips

• For an extra challenge, try the same drill – jumping off of one leg. Then switch to the other leg and repeat.

#4.  Jump Cut Drill

Purpose

To work on jump cut footwork, balance, acceleration and deceleration.

How it Works

• You will need at least 4 cones, but ideally 6-7.
• Place one cone to begin from and another 5 yards in front of it.
• Place a cone 1 yard to the right and the left of the 2nd cone, creating a T shape.
• Player begins by accelerating forward from 1st cone to 2nd.
• At the 2nd cone, the player will perform a lateral jump cut, then accelerate up the field for 5 yards.
• Repeat.

Coaching Tips

• When making the jump cut to the right, the player should plant his left foot hard and explode laterally to the right, keeping his hips and shoulders facing downfield. (vice versa for the opposite side).
• Players should always have the ball in the outside hand.
• As players get more comfortable with the drill, you can increase the length of the acceleration zone to 7-10 yards.
• You can also increase the width of the jump cut zones from 1 yard to 1.5

#3.  Shuffle and Switch

Purpose

To improve ball security and work on keeping center of gravity low and the shoulders squared.

How it Works

• Lay down 4-6 agility bags or pool noodles, 2-3 yards apart.
• Start at one end with a football in hand.
• Begin by accelerating towards the bag, make a move and jump cut out to the left.
• Accelerate forward to the next bag, then shuffle across the face of the bag keeping your shoulders north/south.
• As you come to the end of each bag, explode forward, then cut back inside switching the ball over to the outside hand.
• After reaching the last bag, explode forward another 5-10 yards.

Coaching Tips

• To add an extra challenge, have a partner get a blocking bag and force the ballcarrier to make one last move before exploding forward for another 5-10 yards.

#2.  X Drill

Purpose

To work on agility, balance and improve a runner’s ability to recover after a stumble.

How it Works

1. Setup 4 flat agility bags, pool noodles, gym bags or other soft objects into an X pattern on the ground.
2. Setup two more bags 3-4 yards away from the 'X’, and a partner, stand up dummy or any kind of obstacle 3-4 yards after the last flat bag.
3. Player starts off with a football in one hand and their free hand down in the middle of the 'X'.

Coaching Tips

• Players can finish with a juke, stiff arm – any move they like!
• If you have a partner, they can replace the standup dummy and offer some token defense, forcing the runner to react and run in the opposite direction that they commit.

#1.  Pocket Presence Drill

Purpose

To work on movement and footwork in the pocket while keeping the eyes downfield.

How it Works

1. Place 2 hula hoops 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage and 2 yards apart.
2. If working out alone, place two garbage cans 10-15 yards down the field on either side to simulate receivers.
3. Player will start at LOS with ball in hand, snap and take a 5 step drop, passing in between the hula hoops.
4. Player will plant, then hitch up, avoiding an outside pass rush, before shuffling back around to the center of the pocket.
5. Once back in the pocket, player will locate their target and make a strong accurate throw.

Coaching Tips

• If you have a partner, let them cue you on which side the pass rush is coming from, or act as the receiver you need to locate downfield.

Need More At-Home Football Drills?

If you're looking for more at-home football drills, check our our Backyard Football Drills eBook.

It's packed with 27 solo and partner training drills for throwing, defending, ballhandling and scoring. All organized into 5 pre-designed workout plans you can print out or save to your phone.