Tackling Fundamentals and Safety
Learning how to perform a proper tackle is fundamental to the game of football. If executed poorly not only will you not succeed in stopping the offensive team, but you could possibly injure yourself in the process. Some points to remember when tackling:
First is to cut off your opponent by placing yourself directly in front of them. An excellent technique is to plant your foot in the middle of your opponents. At the same time you want to bring your arms back in anticipation for the next phase.
Second you want to bring your other foot into the mix, and at the same time throw your arms up and around your opponent. At this point you are well planted in front and your head should be in direct contact. Never, ever, ever tackle with the top of your head down, keep it up and square against your opponent. A great way to insure that you are in the right position is to practice touching your facemask to the football of the opposing player.
The third and last step is to bring your hips up and drive the opponent backwards and towards the ground. The more momentum that you bring to the table on steps two and three the more effective your speed will be in this last step.
Conditioning: Quick step crossing
Reaction is as skill that players need to develop through conditioning and drills. This practice drill is intended to increase reaction speed and the ability to quickly change directions. Start out by placing the player on any crossing lined area on the field, anything like a small for square area. Then the player will proceed to jump from on area or box to another, thus forcing the player to jump laterally, diagonally, frontwards, and backwards. Some of the variations can be on legged; either right or left, or changing the order those players will perform the drill.
Strip Tackling
There is a golden rule in football defense, get the ball to the offensive team as quickly as possible. Win your games by training your defense to use a strong tackle that strips the ball from the opponent. Practice dislodging the football on the field in pairs of players. The point is to have the defensive player throw the fist into the football causing the offensive player to fumble the football. This drill is most effective if you start it slow focusing on the motions needed to be effective, and then speed up over time.
Steps to effectively block driving
When talking about the fundamentals of a great offense or defense, you have to know what a good driving and blocking techniques are. The drive block is the most fundamental and should be practiced often. This drive block means that you are going to push the opponent in the direction that they are aligned. It starts with the lineup, when you are facing your opponent notice which way they are aligned, if they are off to the right then you will drive them to the right if the play is occurring on the left side of the field. When executing this block start with your play side foot, meaning if the play is on the right side of you it will be your right foot. Bring the other foot up quickly and make a solid contact for your drive.
Learning how to perform a proper tackle is fundamental to the game of football. If executed poorly not only will you not succeed in stopping the offensive team, but you could possibly injure yourself in the process. Some points to remember when tackling:
First is to cut off your opponent by placing yourself directly in front of them. An excellent technique is to plant your foot in the middle of your opponents. At the same time you want to bring your arms back in anticipation for the next phase.
Second you want to bring your other foot into the mix, and at the same time throw your arms up and around your opponent. At this point you are well planted in front and your head should be in direct contact. Never, ever, ever tackle with the top of your head down, keep it up and square against your opponent. A great way to insure that you are in the right position is to practice touching your facemask to the football of the opposing player.
The third and last step is to bring your hips up and drive the opponent backwards and towards the ground. The more momentum that you bring to the table on steps two and three the more effective your speed will be in this last step.
Conditioning: Quick step crossing
Reaction is as skill that players need to develop through conditioning and drills. This practice drill is intended to increase reaction speed and the ability to quickly change directions. Start out by placing the player on any crossing lined area on the field, anything like a small for square area. Then the player will proceed to jump from on area or box to another, thus forcing the player to jump laterally, diagonally, frontwards, and backwards. Some of the variations can be on legged; either right or left, or changing the order those players will perform the drill.
Strip Tackling
There is a golden rule in football defense, get the ball to the offensive team as quickly as possible. Win your games by training your defense to use a strong tackle that strips the ball from the opponent. Practice dislodging the football on the field in pairs of players. The point is to have the defensive player throw the fist into the football causing the offensive player to fumble the football. This drill is most effective if you start it slow focusing on the motions needed to be effective, and then speed up over time.
Steps to effectively block driving
When talking about the fundamentals of a great offense or defense, you have to know what a good driving and blocking techniques are. The drive block is the most fundamental and should be practiced often. This drive block means that you are going to push the opponent in the direction that they are aligned. It starts with the lineup, when you are facing your opponent notice which way they are aligned, if they are off to the right then you will drive them to the right if the play is occurring on the left side of the field. When executing this block start with your play side foot, meaning if the play is on the right side of you it will be your right foot. Bring the other foot up quickly and make a solid contact for your drive.
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