- American Football Tutorial
- American Football - Home
- American Football - Overview
- American Football - History
- American Football - Terminology
- American Football - Playing Environment
- American Football - Equipment
- American Football - Players & Positions
- American Football - How to Play?
- American Football - Scoring System
- American Football - Rules
- American Football - Variants
- American Football - How to Learn?
- American Football - Tournaments
- American Football - Participating Countries
- American Football - Champions
- American Football - Surprising Facts
- American Football - FAQs
- American Football Resources
- American Football - Quick Guide
- American Football - Useful Resources
- American Football - Discussion
American Football - Players and Positions
American Football is a popular game played between two teams each having 11 players. Each player has his own position and they have to play a special role in the game. All the members of a team have to perform their job all the time to prevent the opponent from reaching the goalpost or the end zone. Before knowing about how the game is played, you need to know the position of the players.
The game consists of 3 teams listed below −
Offensive Team
The offensive team consists of 11 players whose job is to take the ball to the end zone of the opponent. The offensive team has to go for a touchdown or settle for a field goal.
Defensive Team
The defensive team also consists of 11 players and their job is to tackle the offensive team and prevent their attack. They have to tackle the player of the offensive team who carries the ball. They can also catch the pass or knock it down.
Special Team
The offensive and the defensive teams are not allowed for kickoffs and extra points tries. They also cannot go for field goals and punts. All these actions have to be performed by the special team
Players and Positions in the offensive team
The positions of these players are discussed here in detail.
Quarterback (QB)
The player at this position has to control the ball coming from the center. This player has the option to pass the ball to a running back, wide receiver, tight end, or a passing play. QB also has the option of taking the ball and running. He needs to have knowledge about the position of each player so that he can throw the ball to a player of his team.
Offensive Lineman
There are five offensive linemen on the field in the offensive team. These linemen are −
Left Tackle
Left Guard
Center
Right Guard
Right Tackle
The center lineman is the most important as most of the time the ball is with the center. The Center has to snap the ball, hand, or toss it between his feet and pass it to the Quarterback or another player to start the game. Usually, the Center position is held by the captain of the team. He is responsible for communication with the team.
After the ball is in the hands of the Center, none of the players in the offensive team are allowed to touch the ball till the time the center passes the ball or the ball falls down from the hands of the center of the offensive team. This event is known as fumble and in such a case, the offensive team players try their best to push the defensive team so that they could not get the ball. Offensive linemen have the job of blocking the defensive team to get the ball.
Running Back
The job of the Running Back player is to get the ball thrown by the quarterback and run. Running Backs need to be powerful and fast so that they can be able to pass the ball to the other players of their team. They have to look for the best place where they can run and make a sudden stop to change the move. Usually, an offensive team has one running back but sometimes there can be two. If there are five receivers in the offensive team, then there will be no Running Backs.
Fullback
Fullbacks are considered as a mixture of lineman and running back. Their position is between Quarterback and Lineman. Their job is to block the running backs and then carry the ball. In the modern American Football game, Fullbacks are not required.
Tight End
The position of Tight Ends is bigger than the Wide Receivers but smaller than the Offensive Linemen. Their job is to block the linemen by catching the pass. They have to run in a similar way as that of Offensive Linemen. They have to catch the ball and run.
Wide Receiver
The position of Wide Receivers lies at or near the line of scrimmage. They are responsible for carrying the ball and they also have to block running plays. They are also tasked with catching passes. They have the option to jump in the air to catch the ball and run. They have to run on the known routes so that it is easy for the Quarterbacks to pass the ball.
Wide Receivers also have to hide their intentions from the defensive team. Wide Receivers are also allowed to wear face shields to hide the places where they are seeing and throwing the ball.
Players and Positions in Defensive Team
The positions of different players in the defensive team are discussed here.
Defensive Linemen
Defensive linemen have to start playing from the line of scrimmage. This is the line where the ball is kept before the game starts. A defensive team can have 3 to 4 Defensive Linemen who are allowed to keep one or both hands on the field. Defensive Linemen are positioned in the middle and are called defensive tackle. If the number of defensive tackles is only one, he is known as a nose tackle.
The Defensive Linemen are responsible for stopping the Running Back of the offensive team. They also have to pressurize the Quarterback to throw the ball as soon as possible. They also have to tackle the Quarterback and it is known as sack. Defensive Linemen also have to stop the receivers and block them from catching the pass. These players need to be more active in the game.
Linebacker
There are four Linebackers in the defensive team if there are three defensive linemen. In case there are four linemen, the number of linebackers is three. Linebackers have to work faster in comparison to the Defensive Linemen. They have to focus on passes and also have to keep an eye on the tight ends and wide receivers. The middle linebacker has to keep an eye on the quarterback before the play.
Cornerback
Cornerbacks are also known as Defensive Backfield or Defensive Backs. They are positioned outside of the defense and have the responsibility of dealing with the receivers of the offensive team. Cornerbacks try to prevent the receivers from catching the ball. The prevention can be done by batting down the ball or coming in its way while the receiver is going to receive it.
There can be five cornerbacks in a team and the fifth one is known as nickel back. The fifth defensive back is necessary if the offensive team has more number of receivers. If there are six cornerbacks in a defensive team, the sixth one is known as a dime back.
Safety
The last player of the defensive is known as Safety. Safety has the responsibility to play at the back of the defensive team. Safeties have to check that none of the players of the offensive team cross the defense. Safeties have to take care of the large area of the field.
A defensive team has two safeties. One of them is called strong safety and the other one is free safety. The strong safety is positioned at a place where the tight ends of the offensive team are lined up. The strong safety has to reach the line scrimmage while the free safety has to be available at the back of the defense.
Players and Positions in the special team
The members of the special team are discussed below.
Kicker
The kicker is responsible for kicking off the ball and also going for a field goal. He is also responsible for earning point after touchdown (PAT).
Punter
If the offensive players have gone for a fourth touchdown, they may or may not go for the first down. This is so because if they are unable to succeed the first down, they have to give the ball to the defensive team at the place where they have stopped their offense.
The punter has to kick the ball in such a way that the offensive team can be kept away from the end zone. Punters can also give the ball to the kicker to go for a field goal.
Kick Returner
A Kick Returner is a player who has to catch the ball kicked by the kicker and run to the end zone of the opposite team. These players have to run at a fast speed and they can also act as wide receivers or cornerbacks.
Punt Returner
The punt returner has to catch the ball punted by the Punter. The player does not have to return the ball as the special team of the other team has to tackle him. The Punt Returner may return the ball. He can also run towards the end zone of the other team.
Long Snapper
Long Snapper is a special center whose job is to snap the ball to the punter or kicker. The ball has to be kept in between the legs and passed to the punter.
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