American football plays


In American football, a play is a close-to-the-ground plan of action or strategy used to move the ball down the field. A play begins at either the snap from the center or at kickoff. Most commonly, plays occur at the snap during a down. These plays range from basic to very intricate. Football players keep a record of these plays in a playbook.

Order of a play

A play begins in one of two ways:
Once the play begins, it will continue until one of the following events happens:
  • The ball carrier is down, usually defined as when any body part besides the hands and feet touches the ground.
  • The ball carrier's forward progress is stopped to the point where a stalemate occurs and it is clear that the ball cannot be advanced any farther, nor is he easily going down as defined above.
  • The ball carrier steps out of bounds.
  • A forward pass touches the ground before it is caught. The ball touching the ground in other situations does NOT end the play. In the case of a fumble, the play still continues until one of the above conditions is met.
When the play ends, the ball is set for the next play. For the first three instances above, the ball is set at the point of its maximum forward progress. That means that if a runner is driven back in the process of a tackle OR is ruled down by lack of forward progress, the ball is placed as close to his opponent's goal line as he had gotten before being driven back. If he runs backwards of his own volition, the ball is marked where he goes down. In the case of an incomplete pass, the ball is placed at the previous line of scrimmage.
Play then resumes as described above.

Formation requirements

The offensive team must have seven players on the line of scrimmage at the start of a play. Those players may be positioned at any place along the line of scrimmage .
The defensive team may position as many as 11 players on the line of scrimmage. Usually, there are from 3 to 8 defensive players on the line of scrimmage.

Formation types

There are several different types of formations, however, in modern football, formations can typically be classified into 4 categories:
  • Singleback- A singleback formation, also called an “ace” and “lone setback”, is any formation where the quarterback lines up directly under center, with a lone running back lined up approximately 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage.
  • Shotgun- A shotgun formation is one of the most common formations in the modern game. The quarterback lines up 5-7 yards behind the line of scrimmage, typically with one or two halfbacks next to him. While it is often considered a passing formation, an increasing number of teams are building their offenses around shotgun formations and running several types of plays from them.
  • Pistol- A pistol formation is a hybrid of the singleback and shotgun formations. The quarterback lines up about 4 yards behind the line of scrimmage, closer than a shotgun formation. Meanwhile, the halfback lines up behind the quarterback instead of next to him.
  • I-Formation- Another one of the most common formations in modern football. The quarterback lines up directly under center, but rather than having a single set back, a fullback lines up behind the quarterback and a halfback lines up behind the fullback. The name I formation comes from the vertical alignment of the quarterback, fullback, and halfback, especially when compared to a T formation, which is now extremely rare at all levels of modern football.

    Offensive plays

Offensive terminology

  • run block -- An active type of blocking, where the player steps forward in an attempt to push a defensive player out of the path of the ball carrier.
  • pass block-- A passive type of blocking, where the player steps backward to establish a pocket around the quarterback to give the quarterback a chance to pass.
  • lead block-- A situation where one player precedes the ball carrier along his intended path in order to clear any defensive players that have not already been blocked.
  • pull -- When a member of the offensive line takes a step back from his usual place in a line and moves laterally in order to block somewhere else. Pulling can be done on pass and run plays.
  • pocket -- The protected area around a quarterback established by the offensive line in order to give him adequate time and sight lines in order to complete a pass.
  • gap -- A space between blockers. Defenders can shoot the gap.
  • hole -- A space in the line where a ball carrier aims on a running play. These can be predesignated holes defined by the spacing between players before the snap, or they can be established by moving players around and establishing the holes after the snap.
  • snap The act of the center passing the ball from a resting position on the ground to a player behind the line of scrimmage, usually the quarterback.
  • pass -- Also called a forward pass. A ball that leaves a player's hand and moves towards the opponents goal line.
  • lateral -- Also called a backward pass, pitch, or pitch-out based on the technique a quarterback uses to pass the ball. A ball that leaves a player's hand and moves parallel to or away from the opponent's goal line.
  • handoff -- A ball that is handed directly from one player to another without leaving the first player's hands first.

    Running plays

In a running play, the ball is advanced beyond the line of scrimmage by a player who receives it from behind the line of scrimmage. The player advancing the ball can be:
  • the player who receives the ball from the center,
or
  • any further player to receive the ball via handoff or lateral. Any number of handoffs or laterals can occur on any play at any time.

    Up the middle

Also called dive, plunge, buck, gut, slam or numerous other names. The most basic run play is a run up the middle. In this case, the ball is handed off from the quarterback to a running back. The back then aims for a predetermined hole between his offensive linemen. This hole can be either between center and guard or between guard and tackle. The offensive line will run block, pushing defenders away from the chosen hole. Often, the fullback will lead block through the hole first to clear a path for the half back or running back.
  • In a run up the middle, the running back will aim for one of the A or B gaps:
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Iso

Also called a Halfback Lead, this is one of the most basic power runs in football. It is designed to isolate the fullback on a block with a linebacker, giving the halfback an easy 5 yard gain. Meanwhile, the other linebackers are blocked on combo blocks from the offensive line. Because it requires a fullback, it is usually run out of I-formations, however there are several variants of the play that can be run in other formations.

Off tackle

The 'bread-and-butter' of a run-oriented offense, this is typically the most common run play. Rather than aiming for a hole in the line, the running back aims for the spot just outside the tackle. This type of play allows for more improvisation by the running back once he is past the line, since there is often more open field in this area than in any run up the middle.

Toss

In a toss play, the RB "curves out" toward the sideline on either side and the QB pitches the ball to the RB.

Sweep

In a sweep play, the fullback begins by running towards the sideline before heading forward. This motion allows for some of the offensive linemen, often one or both guards, to pull from their normal positions and establish a lane for the running back to run through. A lead blocking fullback often leads him through the lane. This play, known as the Packers sweep, was the central play in Vince Lombardi's "run-to-daylight" offense that was so successful for the Green Bay Packers of the 1960s.

Trap

In a trap, a guard on the back side of the play will pull and lead block for the running back. Often, the fullback will take the place of the guard, and block the opening allowed by this.
  • Trap blocking for a run through the 3-hole between the guard and tackle. The running back will follow the guard through the hole.
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Counter

Also called a misdirection. In this play, the runner begins by taking a step or two away from his intended path, then doubling back and heading in the opposite direction. Often defenders are clueing on the first move of the running back. The defenders committed to the first step, but the play moves in the opposite direction.
Counter plays are often coupled with influence blocking, where the offensive line blocks the defense towards the intended direction of the play. This gambit often causes the defenders to think the play is going in the opposite direction, and they react as such.

Draw

Also called a delay. In a draw play, the offensive line drops into pass blocking positions, and the quarterback takes a drop as though he were going to pass. He then hands the ball off to his running back and runs forward past the rushing defenders. The idea is that the defenders will be tricked in advancing on the quarterback as though it were a pass play, and this will vacate the area just beyond the line of scrimmage for the runner to take advantage of.

Bootleg

The quarterback fakes a handoff to the running back and continues running with the ball opposite from the direction the running back was headed. The bootleg can have blockers similar to a sweep or it can be run naked, that is without any blockers at all. A naked bootleg relies on the defense buying the fake handoff and moving to tackle the running back rather than the quarterback.