Football 101 for Aussies Part 2

Jason Hunt #33
Jul 27, 2017 · 3 min read
Image Source https://www.pexels.com

Continuing with yesterday’s post, today we will explore the offensive team and the positions as well as what a “Drive” is.


Player Positions

Each side has 11 positions to fill on the field. Lets look at each position and the slang by which they are referred to.

Offensive Line

Tackle: LT

Guard: LG

Center: C

T & G line up either side of the C to create a line of defense from the opposing team to protect the QB

The C “Snaps” the ball to the quarterback to initiate the start of the play.

Quarterback: QB

Running Back: RB

Wide Receiver: WR

Tight End: TE

Once the ball snaps, the QB has a few different options to decide on when releasing the ball to gain yardage. The QB could pass it (pass play) to a WR or TE even the RB. The QB could hand off the ball to the RB (Run Play) or even run the ball themselves.

These positions can line up in a number of different ways. We will explore this later on. For now lets just get familiar with the positions.

Image Source https://www.pexels.com — Line of Scrimmage shown

Drives

If a team has possession of the ball, they are on the offense. The objective is to score a touchdown and point after. The offensive teams has 4 downs to make at least a 10 yard gain from where they have came into possession.

The first down is commonly referred to 1st and 10. Meaning it’s the first down and the offense has 10 yards to make another 1st down. 2nd and long means the offense has greater than 6 yards to make a first down. 3rd and short means that they need to make at least 4 yards and 4th and inches means the offense has a few inches to make the first down.

The 1st and X ect can have any number applied to the yardage as it all depends on how well the defensive team can defend against the offense.

The defense has 4 downs to either stop the offense from gaining a 1st down or gain possession of the ball by interception, recovering fumbles or by forcing the offense to punt/field goal attempt. The defense can achieve this by tackling the Quarterback (Sack) which results in loss yardage for the offense.

For example it’s 1st and 10 and the QB gets sacked 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage. The next down would be 2nd and 20 or 2nd and long.

Be on the lookout tomorrow as we learn about the defense. This is where I play with the Bayside Ravens as a Linebacker. As the days/weeks go on I will explain in more depth about these positions, for now though the goal is to give you enough information and understanding of the game so that the next time you watch the NFL you can enjoy it that much more.

To follow my journey into learning this sport first hand with the Bayside Ravens check out my YouTube channel by clicking here https://youtu.be/AHd4-olFWm8

See you on the field,

Jason Hunt

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Jason Hunt #33

Written by

Digital Marketer, Amateur Athlete and Sports Explorer trying to live that good life

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