Football is a demanding sport that requires flexibility, strength, speed, and agility to become elite football players. Thus, every football payer is in need of football conditioning drills and conditioning programs.
Around a decade ago, there was a time in American football where most of the players had more similarities than differences. A single-player was supposed to play multiple positions, and everyone had to know how to play offensive and how to tackle in the game.
As the game has evolved, football started wanting specialists in one position, instead of someone who had all traits.
And with the time, football became the sport of specialists having assigned duty along with the game.
In this blog, I will share different football Conditioning drills, and conditioning programs, why they are essential, and some best playing strategies for that position and explain American football.
Offensive Players.
There are 11 players under the offensive line in football. They are further divided into two groups: five offensive linemen whose primary role is to protect their quarterback and block opponents. Six backs and receivers whose primary function is to pass the ball and score touchdowns. And it is their job to be able to advance towards the end to score points.
Quarterback. (QB)
The quarterback is the most controlling position on the offensive side. This player receives the ball in the line of scrimmage, initiates action, and handles the snap movement at the beginning of the play.
The quarterback should be an expert in throwing the ball with power and accuracy.
- Why is it important?
Quarterback is one of the essential positions in football, and the reason behind that is that the quarterback should be able to lead the offense, throw the ball, hand it to the accurate player, and relay the plays to other players.
We all know good passes wins the game, and the responsibility of knowing the positions of every player and executing the play are the qualities of a quarterback.
Some legendary quarterback examples are Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Joe Montana, and Peyton Manning.
- Drills and exercises for quarterbacks.
- Drop drill.
- Pocket movement.
- Routes and air.
- Pat and Go.
- Throwing progression.
- Top Recommended coaches for a quarterback.
- George Whitfield.
- Chris Weinke.
- Terry Shia.
- Steve Calhoun.
- Manning passing academy.
- Quarterback playing strategies.
Quarterbacks are always someone who is tall and should have one of the expertise of instead passing the ball well or running well.
They should have the leadership qualities and should be able to guide the offense down the field.
Overall, quarterback roles vary depending on what he is good at and the skills of the player.
Offensive linemen. (O Line)
The offensive line has the responsibility of holding the defensive line to protect their quarterback.
In total, there are five positions of the offensive line, and they are, left tackle, right tackle, left guard, right guard, and center.
Every position has its role of responsibilities and expertise.
Some legendary offensive line examples are Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Adrian Peterson, Earl Campbell.
- Why is it important?
Offensive line performance can result in winning or losing the game; they are far the most prominent and most substantial players on the field. The significant role of the Offensive line is to block for the player with the ball.
- Drills and exercises for the offensive line.
- Fighting with your hands.
- Breaking double team blocks
- Recovery.
- Block recognition drill.
- One on One pass-rush training.
- Top Recommended coaches for Offensive linemen.
- Rick Trickett.
- Mike Munchak.
- Bill Callahan.
- Dante Scarnecchia.
- John Matsko.
- Offensive linemen playing strategies.
In football, offensive linemen have the primary job of blocking and holding the opposition players.
Along with having useful blocking techniques, they should have the strength to oppose the players with proper skills and strategies to improve quickly by following the drills explained above.
Usually, NFL offensive line players can bench press over 500 pounds, making them extremely strong and powerful.
Running Back.
Running backs are the most versatile players in football; they are the players who line up behind the offensive line to receive the ball from the quarterback and run as far as possible before he gets tackled by the opposition.
The only reason they are called the most versatile is that they can catch, run, block, and even throws a pass; this player does everything.
- Why is it important?
Running back helps catch passes and block linebackers; there are different types of running back positions like Fullback and halfback.
Earlier, when all the running back players wanted to gain yards and carry the ball, it is now more pass-centric where these positions make it better with individual expertise.
- Drills and exercises for Running Backs.
- Two-pass protection set drill.
- Simple punch drill.
- Concentration drill.
- Ball security gauntlet.
- Simple punch drill.
- Top Recommended coaches for Running back.
- Jay Graham
- Skip Peete.
- Eric Bieniemy.
- John settles.
- Tony Alford.
- Running back playing strategies.
Running backs can be anywhere from zero to three depending on what kind of game you’re playing, running backs can be large or small depending on what position you’re playing. For Fullback, they should be large and powerful since their primary job is to block, whereas halfback is the player that is considered to run with the ball most of the time, so they are usually quicker and faster. They are again one of the valuable players in the team.
Defensive Linemen.
Defense in football always means to stop the opposition from scoring points. Though successful defense still deals with great athleticism, including utmost speed and agility.
The defensive line is also known as the first defense line and is one of every football team’s crucial members. It consists of three to four players who line up in the scrimmage line opposite the offensive line.
The defensive line is again of two types; defensive tackle and defensive end.
Here both types of defensive lines have different roles and their expertise.
- Why is it important?
Defensive lines are the most critical team members, although it’s just the excellent defense that stops the offense from scoring more and resulting in winning the match. But their responsibilities are dependent on where they line up and the type of defense they love to play.
There are different positions for a defensive line like Defensive tackle. They work on rushing the quarterback and preventing the opposite team from scoring, along with Defensive End and Nose tackle.
- Drills and exercises for the Defensive line.
- Shed block drill
- Push-pull rip drill.
- Trap drill
- Six-point explosion.
- Club rip drill.
- Top Recommended coaches for Defensive line.
- Rod Marinelli
- Brick Haley
- Tracy rocker.
- Jim Panagos.
- Jim Tomsula.
- Defensive linemen playing strategies.
Defensive linemen are the player who specializes in playing on the line of scrimmage. They are strong, significant, and are rivaled only by the offensive line.
Their primary strategy always revolves around how they can save the line of scrimmage.
Depending on the formation of the game, other defensive linemen are included, like for 4-3 appearance. It employs three defensive linemen that are used a lot in the NFL. Also, in 3-4 buildings, it involves only one defensive, also known as the nose tackle. However, the primary strategy for both remains the same.
Linebacker. (LB)
Linebackers are the defensive team where they line up approximately three to five yards behind the scrimmage line or defensive line. We can also understand it has a significant role in backing the defensive line from the name itself.
- Why is it important?
Linebackers deal with many things in-game, and that’s why they are also the best all-rounders on the field. There are many reasons why linebackers are essential in every team; there are around three to four linemen present, depending on the game’s formation.
Their role in the game is of stopping the run, covering speedy wide receivers, and chasing the quarterback.
They are mostly above six feet in NFL with between 220 to 270 pounds of weight, again with height different the positions of the player alter.
They are known to be severe, muscular, but they also have to be fast and agile.
- Drills and exercises for Linebacker.
- Hitting on the rise drill
- Weave and tackle drill
- Track and tackle drill
- Shed and tackle drill.
- Run and rush drill.
- Top Recommended coaches for Linebacker.
- Jack del Rio.
- Ron Rivera.
- Joe Barry.
- Bret Bielema.
- Mike Vrabel.
- Linebacker playing strategies.
Line-backer has always been least appreciated, but we all know how vital linebackers have a role in every game.
Line-backer is often seen with the dual role of defending the run and working with the pass.
Combining both linebackers and defensive linemen, they are known as front seven on the line of scrimmage.
Recommended Read: