Offense

Five kinds of players on offense. Learn the name and one job.

Quarterback (QB). Stands behind the center. Takes the snap. Hands the ball off or throws it.

Running back (RB). Stands behind the quarterback. Runs the ball. Sometimes catches. Sometimes blocks.

Wide receiver (WR). Lines up wide. Catches passes. Blocks on the edge when we run.

Tight end (TE). Lines up next to the tackle. Blocks like a lineman and catches like a receiver.

Offensive line (OL). Five players in the middle. They protect the quarterback and open holes for the run.

1. 01Who stands behind the center? The quarterback.
2. 02The line is on the ball. Skill players are not always on the ball.
3. 03Your position has one job on every snap. Ask your coach what it is before you line up.

Get in a stance you can fire from. Listen for the snap word. Do not jump.

1. 01Feet under you. Weight on the inside balls of your feet, not your heels.
2. 02Down linemen: hand in the dirt, butt up, head up. You should be able to see the man across from you.
3. 03Skill players: two-point stance unless your coach says otherwise. Hands on thighs, eyes up.
4. 04The snap word is the start. Moving before it is a penalty (false start on offense).
5. 05If you do not hear the call, ask. A wrong alignment is a wasted play.

A formation is where everyone stands before the snap. Find the wide guys first. Then find the backs.

If two players are out wide, those are usually the receivers. If nobody is wide and two tight ends are on the ball, you are in a heavy set like Bear.

1. 01I-formation: two backs stacked. Easy to see.
2. 02Shotgun: quarterback is off the hip of the center, five yards back. The ball is in the air.
3. 03Pistol: quarterback closer than shotgun, running back still behind him.
4. 04Bear / double tight: no wideouts. Two tight ends. Three backs. That is this playbook’s home.

Holes are the gaps in the line, numbered so the call tells you where to run.

This site numbers holes the way the Bear playbook does. Even holes are to the right. Odd holes are to the left. The 2-hole is the A-gap right of the center. The 4-hole is the next gap (B-gap). The 6-hole is outside the tackle (C-gap). The 8-hole is outside the tight end.

The ball carrier has a number too. 1 is the quarterback. 2 is the tailback. 3 is the fullback. 4 is the Bear. Carrier + hole = the play number. 2 through the 4-hole is 24.

1. 01Even = right. Odd = left.
2. 0224 means the 2 through the 4-hole.
3. 03If 4 is clogged, the bounce is 6. The cutback is 2. That is already in the playbook.
4. 04Do not invent a different numbering on Friday. Use the one your coach taught.

A run play is a handoff (or a pitch) that hits a hole. Follow your blockers. Get north.

Inside zone / outside zone. The line steps the same way and the back reads a defender. Inside hits A/B. Outside / stretch widens it.

Power. Down blocks, a kickout, a wrap. Hits the C-gap. In this book: Bear R 46, the 4 carries.

Iso / lead. A back leads through the hole and blocks a linebacker. Double Iso is two leads.

Toss / sweep. Pitch or wide handoff. Get outside. Catch it going.

Trap. Leave a down lineman unblocked, pull a guard, kick him. Hit the hole inside that kick. Bear R 32.

Counter. Step one way, the pullers go the other. The back follows the pull.

Draw / sneak. Draw looks like pass, then handoff. Sneak is the quarterback behind the center on a short yard.

1. 01Inside = follow the line. Outside = get width, then north.
2. 02Do not dance in the hole. One cut.
3. 03The ball is the most important thing. Two hands until you are in space.

Someone throws. Someone catches. Everyone else protects or gets open.

Go (fade / vertical). Run straight down the field.

Out. Run up, break toward the sideline.

In / slant. Run up, break inside. Slant is a quicker, sharper in.

Curl. Run up, stop, come back to the ball.

Screen. A short throw with blockers in front of the catcher. Looks like they got through. They did not.

Play-action. Fake the run, then throw. That is Power Pass in this book.

1. 01Protect the quarterback. If you are a back on Power Pass, you are a blocker. The 2 has the 6-hole. The 3 has the 8-hole.
2. 02Catch with your hands. Tuck the ball. Then run.
3. 03If you are not in the pattern and not protecting, you are in the wrong place.

Short lists. Do these every day.

Quarterback: take the snap, put the ball in the pocket of the 2 (near arm high, far arm low), do not watch the hole, get out of the mesh. Two hands on the ball until you give it.

Running back: near elbow up, far arm under. Eyes to the hole, not the quarterback, once the ball is in. Pad level. North-south, then one cut.

WR / TE: release, get your eyes back, catch with hands, tuck, then run. On a run play, you are a blocker on the edge. That is not optional.

OL: first step to your gap, hat on the numbers, finish the block. Do not stop your feet.