Alright ladies, how are you feeling?? Feeling more confident about this football thing? Are you loving it yet? Or are you still lost? No need to fear, Kassie is herrrrre!! Today I am going to talk about different plays and coverages that you will see from the offense and the defense. Remember, this applies to both college and pro football.

Offensive terms

Play action-A pass play that is designed to look like a running play. The purpose of this play is to fool the defense into thinking it is a run so the QB has a chance to find an open receiver.

Shotgun-This is a passing play where the QB typically lines up about five yards behind the line of scrimmage. This formation allows the QB to see what the defense is doing and make any necessary changes before the ball is snapped.

Throwing it away-When the QB deliberately throws the ball out of bounds or over the head of one of his receivers. A QB will throw the ball away sometimes if he can not find an open receiver or if he is in danger of losing yardage because of pressure from the defense.

Intentional grounding-This is called sometimes as a result of the QB throwing it away. A referee can determine that either there was no receiver within the vicinity of where the ball was thrown or that the receiver had no realistic chance to catch the ball. The penalty results in a loss of 10 yard and the team will also lose a down.

Pump fake-When the QB fakes like he is throwing the ball in hopes of throwing off the defenders which will give his receivers more time to run their routes

Defensive terms

Man to man-A defense designed where a defender is assigned to cover a specific receiver

Blitz-My favorite defensive play! Remember there are five offensive linemen and there are typically three or four defensive linemen. During a blitz, the defense will rush the offensive linemen using additional defensive players in hopes of sacking the QB, tackling the runner behind the line of scrimmage or rushing the QB’s throw. I have dreams of one day blitzing a QB, preferably Tom Brady and his short helmet :-}.

Zone coverage-A defensive set up where defenders are assigned to cover certain areas of the field and the receivers that venture into those areas

Double coverage-Two defenders are assigned to cover one receiver. If you see two defenders for one receiver, then this automatically tells you that this receiver has the potential to change the game at any moment and the defense knows that.

Bump and run-A defender can bump the receiver within the first five yards past the line of scrimmage. By bumping, the defender hopes to disrupt the route the receiver is trying to run. However, if the defender is not successful at disrupting then the defender will have to match the receiver stride for stride in an effort to keep the receiver from catching the ball.

Bonus term

Audible-When the QB changes the play at the line of scrimmage….it is that simple.

NFL Tidbits

There are 32 team in the NFL. Learn at least half before the end of the year.

The NFL is divided into two conferences: The National Football Conference and the American Football Conference. Each conference has 16 teams, divided into four divisions.

The New York Giants are the reigning Super Bowl Champions.

SuperBowl XLVII(47) will be held in New Orleans on February 3, 2013. Yes ladies, your man and some of your girlfriends will be M.I.A. for another 4.25 months. Sorry!!

The Pittsburgh Steelers have won the most SuperBowls. They have six rings. The San Francsico 49ers(the only teams to win EVERY SuperBowl they have played in) and the Dallas Cowboys have won five.

Until next time…TOODELLS!!