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As an American who's grown up watching and playing American Football, you never realize how complex it is until you hear it being explained to someone who's never watched/played 😂 luckily the more you watch, the more it will just become second nature like anything else and the more you'll likely enjoy it
That's good point - we grow up with football from the time we're little kids so it's kind of like natural, almost instinctive. comparatively I've watched a bit of soccer and I still don't understand it much better than the first time I saw it on tv. Rugby, there's another crazy Euro thing and to me, it looks like a bunch of big dudes crushing the bones, skulls and spines of the other guys. it's basically a group wrestling match on a football field and biggest dudes win by sending the opponent to the hospital. It's almost like combat between two competing gyms where all the gym rats throw a ball in the air and then crush and bust each other up. For sure, lot of beef on the field - or, as we said in the old days, a grown up version of smear the queer.
One thing that wasn't mentioned, but you guys asked about, is that there are rules regarding how the offense can line up, but there are no rules regarding how the defense lines up. The offense is actually quite limited with how they can line up, and when they get set, they cannot move until the ball is snapped (with one exception for a single motioned player). The defense can literally have any guy line up anywhere on their side of the scrimmage line, and they can jump around and move as much as they want before the ball is snapped (with some minor limitations).
Multiple offensive players CAN move before the snap, but they must reset before the snap, and the single motioned player, can not be moving forward at the snap, only parallel to the line of scrimmage. That ability to move forward prior to the snap is huge difference in the CFL and AFL.
Certain defensive alignments allow more flexibility, in either the run or the pass. Defenses constantly adjust their alignment depending on down and distance. There is a lot to learn, in such an easy game! Lol. Keep watching and learning. Maybe you can join a touch football league and just learn the basics. Good luck.
5:46 Fun fact: there is a very antiquated rule that allows a player to dropkick a ball through the goalposts for a field goal, but this is extremely rare and has only been done in a regulation game once over the past 80 years or so.
As someone who has lived in many parts of Europe and Asia and found himself needing to often explain the basics of American football, I'm happy to know this (and the video you watched) is out there. There might be a few things I'd change (like, I'd want to add a sentence or two about how the clock works and the rules for a forward pass... anyone can throw it, as long as the ball is behind the line of scrimmage... the quarterback is merely a specialist in it), and there are situations (as in any sport) where the nuance missed in a summary will make some strategy harder to understand, but it is the best short overview I think I've ever seen.
It used to be harder to make 10 yards. If you look at statistics all the passing leaders, all the passing records have come in about the last 15 years. That's because quarterbacks are protected by rules from getting hurt. Quarterbacks used to get beat up a lot more, but now someone like Brady can play into his early/mid 40's
Remember that the offensive team has only 25 seconds to snap the ball for the next play from the end of the previous play so even the kicking plays are timed.
@@GaviLazan Depends upon what happenend the previous play, normally it's 40 but it can be 25 in certain scenarios. Also different in college and the pros.
You don’t have too gain JUST 10 yards in 4 downs, the objective is too make at LEAST 10 yards to keep possession of the ball in 4 downs but of course you can gain more yards then that in any given one play which every team tries too do in order too score as many points in the quickest amount of time as possible
It's possible to score a 1 point safety, but it's incredibly rare as it has only happened twice with the most recent one happening during the 2013 Fiesta Bowl and has yet to happen in the NFL
It IS the best team sport in the world... the strategy, designing plays, trying to fool the other team, the brute force of a massive hit, the gracefulness and skill of the ball being thrown, as the QB is under great pressure, to a speeding receiver that has a defender in his way but makes the catch...the heart it takes to not only play but make your way into the huddle as a player ON the field. Best team sport ever, EVER!
@@maxwiidanen7281 it really is..and that was the purpose of the game from the start, an activity to prepare young men for war... but nothing can prepare anyone for war.
Any given Sunday. The best team can lose to the worst team if the best team is not playing well and vice versa. Evolved from rugby as most know. Would be interesting to see if it spreads to UK/Australia.
As he stated, linebackers will either stay a few yards down field to tackle running backs or defend against short passes, or they can attack the quarterback. When linebackers immediately attack the quarterback, that is called a blitz. Sometimes safeties also blitz the quarterback, which is called, you guessed it, a safety blitz. A successful blitz can result in a sack, but the risk you take in blitzing is that you leave some receivers open to catch a pass who otherwise would have been defended by the linebackers or the safety. So if the quarterback can throw the ball quickly enough during a blitz, he can complete a pass to an open player with relative ease.
I don’t know how you guys feel about doing a longer video, but it would be cool to see you commentate an entire quarter of a football game. One quarter is 15 minutes of time when the clock is actually moving. The video you watched here did a very good job of explaining the basics, but once you watch a real game and hear the commentary on it you’ll get a much better understanding for everything that’s happening in a game. With your knowledge of rugby I’m sure you’d pick up on it fairly quickly!👍
There is a lot to the kicking game they didn’t have time to cover.The kicker shows the holder where he wants the ball placed when it comes to him. The holder puts his hand down in that spot and has to remember by feel where to place the ball down. The center snaps the ball between his legs while the defense is charging in on him. The holder catches the snap with both hands. Places the ball down in the desired spot. Spins the ball so the laces are facing away from the kicker. And the kicker kicks the ball. The kicker usually starts toward the spot he will be kicking before the ball reaches the holder. The timing is crucial because you only have a couple of seconds before the defense gets to the kicker to block the kick.
American football evolved from rugby. In the late 1800s the coach at Yale University would make up new rules that usually favored Yale. For some reason other schools looked forward to finding out what the new rules are for this year. So the dead ball, which lead to the stop of play, later the forward pass.
Already my favorite channel on TH-cam you guys are legends 😂 i hope you guys dive deeper into American culture, whether it’s the history, military, music or sports we have a lot to offer 💯
One rule they didn't mention, when a team is called for a penalty, the other team's coaches have the option of accepting the penalty yards or declining the yards based on what benefits their team. For example: if the defense is penalized for offsides (a defensive player crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped) and the offense gains 10 yards, the offense can accept the penalty and only gain five yards, or they can decline it and keep the much larger gain
Defenses come in many different shapes the type of defense is named after the positions. For example a 3-4 defense has three down linemen and four linebackers (with 4 players deep in the back field) a 4-3 has four down linemen and three linebackers. A nickel defense has five deep backs, and a cover two has two deep backs. The defense shown is a standard 4-3 defense which is sort of outdated.
The thing about 10 yards in 4 plays is that the vast majority of the time it's actually 3 plays. Yes, you always get 4, but most of the time if you haven't got a first down and it's 4th, you're better off either punting it to not give up field position or you're trying to kick a field goal.
In association football, some teams play for possession and others concede possession and play for the counter attack. In American football, possession is life. Teams with large deficits of possession are severely disadvantaged. Another key element is called "field position". In a nutshell, that is the point at which a team assumes offensive/attacking possession. The following is not a hard and fast rule, but it serves as a decent reference to understand field possession: every yard distant from the opposition's end zone translates to a 1% reduction in the likelihood of scoring a touchdown during that possession. In other words, a team which takes possession at midfield (50 yard line) has a roughly 50% probability of scoring a touchdown. Field position is dictated by two factors - effectiveness of kick returners, and defensive turnovers. When statistics are compiled, an important one is "total yards". Basically, it's an indication of the offense's efficiency. When a team has an advantage of field position, it decreases the efficiency demands. Coaches and pundits call that "hidden yardage". Another impactful element is the enforcement of fouls. In American football, that is generally done in the form of assessed yardage. The more severe the foul, the greater the yardage assessed against the team which committed the infraction. On that subject, players may be sent off, although there is no system of yellow and red cards. Players are sent off for very serious fouls - excessive violence with willful intent to injure, fighting, and making any form of physical contact with a referee. When a player is sent off, his team may substitute - they are not required to play with ten men.
These reactions are awesome! We appreciate you guys learning about the game. It's a lot of fun. Hopefully you get a chance to do a reaction to a live game. It's a ton of fun in the stadium, especially college games with the cheerleaders & bands & crazy student cheering sections.
Pretty good primer on American Football. As mentioned at the end there are a lot of additional details, most around penalties. But after watching any rugby fan should be able to understand American Football.
I’m liking the uploads, guys! It’s always enjoyable watching outsiders learn about various aspects of life over here. American Football can seem a bit confusing at first. But, once you’ve got a grasp of the basics, you’re more or less all set. The more in depth rules and technicalities can always be learned upon exposure. If you’re open to checking out the NHL at some point, I’d *highly* recommend watching “The Beauty of Hockey”.
Thank you Greg! We are really enjoying it so far! We’ve got one NHL video recorded for the near future but will definitely be exploring more American sports in depth!
“The more in depth rules and technicalities can always be learned upon exposure.” Great point. Just hearing the verbiage of the rules can be overwhelming, but after a few games, most of the obscure aspects are explained on the field once called, which is the best example of live, instant feedback. Excellent point to those unaccustomed, providing a “light at the end of the tunnel” for those truly interested in self educating about other cultures.
Great video! Clarifications from Kansas, USA! Formations: Both offence and defense can be an ANY position behind the line that they would like. Leading to some really dumb plays recently and in the past. Roles: Many roles have double or sometimes triple responisiblities differing each play. For instance the tight end (offense) may block as part of the line, attempt to catch the ball in the midfield, block in the midfield, or (if you are Travis Kelce) catch the ball anywhere better than any Wide Receiver. And, Runningback (offense) whos primary job when not running the ball is defending the quarterback OR acting as a distraction OR as another hidden wide receiver. Field Goal: I noticed when you were discussing the differences between rugby and football in kicking there were some misunderstandings. During a Kick off (beginning of a half or post touchdown) the kickers have a stand they post the ball on. However, duringa field goal there is no stand for the holder (usually the punter) to put the kick its up to him to do it right without one. The reason it has to be so fast (under 1.3-5 seconds) is because every play (other than kickoff) is treated the same, so the opposing special teams has the opporunity (though rare) to block or disrupt the kick. Just like special teams may fake a kick at ANY time. Referees: Although mic'd the referees are usually only heard saying which team, which penalty, which person, whether the penalty was declined, and the punishment. There is little clarity. There is a huge push for this, but NFL referees are NOT full time paid positions year round and most of our best referees have been picked up by TV networks for millions of dollars.... because TV wants to fucking understand whats going on and the NFL can't apparently afford that.
There are some limited rules about how offence can line up. Your need to have a certain number of players very near the scrimmage line at the snap. you can not have a player line up very close to the sidelines. (this is to keep a receiver from hiding just in front of his team on the sidelines and not being seen by the defense)
To be fair, game announcers break the game and rules down pretty much every game. ESPN and NBC announcers are a lot better at doing that though. When ESPN had John Gruden doing MNF games it was amazing.
The rules are pretty straight forward. My family didn't watch sports when I was a kid. But I started watching football and figured out the rules before I was 10. That was before they put all the lines and info on the field through graphics on TV. You just had to look at the chains and figure it out. When they come out to measure you sort of get the idea of what they are trying to do.
I really love how as the internet grows we get interested with each other's football! Soccer is growing so much here in the states (everyone plays it at school and they always have but they never watched it) In the NFL comes over to Europe a couple of times a year now
The rules aren't terribly complicated. You'll find more complexity in the game when you start to learn the various positions and their responsibilities during the game. For example, what should the offensive linemen do during each play? If it's a running play they behave one way and if it's a passing play it's another way. Linemen can "pull" from one side of the line to the other at times. And there are various "schemes" defenses can use depending on what they expect the offense to do. Good video.
Haha! I went into this knowing a little bit and have learnt a lot already from the videos we’ve made and games I’ve watched and not to mention all the comments! My friend on the other hand was a complete novice 😂
What is so funny is watching you guys try to understand the rules and seeing what gives you the most trouble. As a Yank, I know the rules and procedures of football like the back of my hand, just as you guys would know Rugby or Football (Soccer). It gives an interesting perspective on what is confusing in the game.
A very small point - AFAIK, the only official that has the microphone is the Referee. The Referee is the head official (crew chief) on the field and there is only one person with the title of Referee, even if they are all informally known as reffs or referees. The letters on the back of the officials shirts will tell you their exact role in the game, such as Line Judge, Back Judge, Down Judge . . .and one that is an Umpire. The other officials may be the ones to spot a foul and throw the flag, but the announcement will always be made by the Referee. The Referee is the only one to wear a white cap.
One fundamental rule that is not given enough notice in the vid is that the offense must line up with 7 of the 11 players on the line of scrimmage, and the other 4 behind the line of scrimmage. On a forward pass play, only the 4 backfield players and the 2 players at the END of the line of scrimmage can go down for a pass. Since one of the backs will be throwing the pass (technically a restricted lineman could throw a pass, but it never happens), there are only 5 offensive players downfield to receive a pass. The defense can use all 11 of its players to defend those 5 if it wishes, but will almost always have a balance of pass defenders and pass rushers going after the thrower.
Another small bit, once the ball is moved across the scrimmage line, it can no longer be passed forward. However, whoever is running with the ball, can pass is laterally or behind them, past the scrimmage line.
The players capping the offensive line are eligible receivers. They will usually be Tight Ends or Wide Receivers, but on special plays an Offensive Tackle, called a Tackle Eligible. There has to be seven players on the line (offense) and four in the backfield, for a total of 11 players.
There is actually a fifth way to score, which is a drop kick. It almost never happens, but it is worth two points. You have to drop kick the ball through the uprights like a field goal, but the kicker catches the snap directly from the long snapper and then drops the ball on the ground and kicks the ball on the bounce. The reason this play has nearly gone extinct is that the shape of the football has changed over the last 100 years. The ball is longer and less round, which makes the ball much more difficult to drop kick. On an aside, I would like to see the amount of points changed to four or five. This would bring back the drop kick, and give teams an opportunity to score more points than a field goal. End of game situations would become more complex and interesting.
Note those are only common offense and defense formations. That defense is a common 4-3 base defense. There is another common base 3-4 defense where you have less lineman and more linbackers. Then you have the nickel, dime, and prevent defense with more cornerbacks/safeties to defend when passes are expected. So lots and lots of defense formations. Pretty sure the only restriction on defense is to have not more than 11 men on the field and do not cross the plane of the ball until it is snapped. Offense is a little more structured with who is illegible to catch the ball and how they have to line up and how "set" they have to be before the snap.
Some info on the physical characters of the various offensive positions: The quarterback is the most important position on the offense. The good QB can "read" a defense and change the play called to exploit a weakness he observes at the line of scrimmage, whichis called an "audible". All that yelling before the snap is often to disguise the verbal audible play call. The top QB's can throw the ball with accuracy from 1 yd to 50+ yds. Most Qb weigh 190-230 lbs and are 6ft to 6-4 tall and so they can see over the shoulder pads of the massive linemen. Few NFL QB run the ball except on rare occasions to prevent injury to their legs and throwing shoulder arms. Good QB will complete 60% of their passes. The full back is like a bull and is responsible for running for short yardage situations (1- 5 yds) and blocking for the QB and the running backs. Typical size is 6 ft and 250 lbs. Halfbacks are the speedy running backs and weight 190-225 lbs on average. The best halfbacks are expert at remaining behind the blockers until an opening in the defense develops and once in the open field, they are very difficult to catch and tackle. There are 5 ""interior" offensive linemen, a center, 2 tackles and 2 guards. The center "hikes" the ball to the QB. All of these interior linemen are blockers on run, pass plays, extra point and field goals. They are massive, hugely powerful men. Average linemen are 6'4 and weigh 280 lb and up. The tight ends block and catch usually short passes of a few yds to 15 from the line of scrimmage. They are usually about 6-3 tall and typically weigh 220-250 lbs. The wide receiver are usually the speediest men on the field and many have world class sprint speed. The wide receivers are usually 6-2 to 6-5 tall and their acrobatic catches make for some of the most amazing high light film clips. The wide receivers often return the ball on kickoff and punts. All receivers have to be able to concentrate on catching the ball knowing the there is a high chance that they will be savagely tackled a few tenths of a second after making the catch. The strategy of the game is for offensive team to use their players to best export the weakness(es) of the defense. Players on offense and defense are often exchanged on every play to allow the offense to run the play most likely to get a first down or touch down, while the defensive players will be substituted to provide the optimum personal (extra linemen or defensive backs) to stop the play the offense is most likely to run. If our Brit cousins find this info useful, I'll be happy to provide a similar breakdown of the defensive players and some of the strategies used by both teams.
Special teams only exist usually when there's a 'formal' transfer of possession. Meaning during a kickoff play at the beginning of the halves (1st & 2nd, and overtime if needed) or when a team scores. Or punting, which is when an offense gives up possession and kicks the ball to the opposing team. And finally, when a field goal or extra point attempt are made. Edit: one other thing that's not often mentioned, but transfers of possession happen after any field goal at the point where the football was kicked if missed. It's just not very often when a team would choose to kick a field goal prior to 4th down, basically only if time is an issue or in game winning situations.
American football is basically live gladiator chess ( the linemen are pawns, rooks are tight ends, knights are running backs, bishops are receivers, the queen is your quarterback and the king is your coach). Blocking (pawn structure) is super important. Every player has a number and every gap on the line is numbered. So the quarterback may call a play "32" which means 3 man through the 2 hole. The quarterback can change the play when he steps up to to the line and doesn't like what he sees. This is a called an "audible." Super tactical like chess.
Clarity on what a “sack” is: It is only considered a sack if: 1) The quarterback has the ball AND 2) Has not handed the ball to another player who has then given it back to the quarterback (in other words, the quarterback is the only player to have touched the ball after it was snapped), AND 3) The quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage (the line where the ball was when the play began). If any of those 3 are not true, then the play is considered a regular “tackle,” rather than a “sack.” Therefore, a sack is detrimental because it ALWAYS (not “usually”) results in a loss of yards. Cheers!
It is only considered a quarterback "sack" if the defense tackles the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage (the line where where the ball was snapped at the beginning of the play). If the QB runs and gets tackled after he passes the line of scrimmage, it's not a sack.
Adding context to ur question of the defense's shape. The general mechanism is how many guys you have in the box (in between the ends of the offensive line and about 7 yards beyond the line of scrimmage) and how many guys in coverage. In a way it works similar to world football in adding or removing midfielders to control the middle of the field, but since substitutions aren't permanent it allows the team to change formations through out set of downs. Typically 1st and 2nd down teams will option to have 7 (sometimes up to 8) players in the box since early downs will typically be running plays and gets players closer to the ball. 3rd down (or 4th if a team goes for it) is more situational and depends on the yards left for a first down, if its 3 or less teams will stack the box to deny and easy run, 6 or more (referred to generally as third and long) will see more coverage players since the offense will most likely pass to get the yards needed.
Another thing they didn't really cover was how the clock effects the game. Once a play is finished, the clock for that particular quarter either keeps going or stops depending on how the play turned out. Runner with the ball was tackled? Clock keeps running. Incomplete Pass? Clock stops. And so on... There is also a "Play Clock" of 40 seconds - if you finish a play you have 40 seconds to get the next play together and execute, otherwise you get assessed a Delay Of Game penalty (the Down then advances, or you get more yards tacked on). This also comes into play with 'clock management' strategies (if you're in the lead towards the end of the game, burn up as much of the main clock as you can between plays, so there's less time for the other team once they get the ball) This is where time outs come in. If you can't get your play together by the time the play clock goes off, you call a time out. In addition, there's an official 'time-out' when there's 2 minutes left in each half (literally called the "Two Minute Warning"), as well as other official time-outs like when there's a play to be reviewed or a referee conference, etc. And one fun thing - if the game time runs out during the play, the game doesn't end until the play stops, so often you'll see crazy plays where the ball is thrown laterally back and forth hoping for a desperate chance to score before someone gets tackled and ends the game.
There is a big rule to lining up as the defense in the NFL you cannot line up over the center/long snapper (you can't occupy the space between his shoulders) if the play is a kicking play.
They forgot about laterals and the restrictions on forward passing. A lateral is any pass that travels either directly sideways across the field or backwards. Laterals have a couple of key differences from the forward pass. First, there can only be one forward pass in a play and it must be thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, though it does not have to go past the line of scrimmage. Laterals can be made anywhere on the field and any number of times throughout a play, much like passing in rugby. Second, if a lateral misses the intended player and hits the ground it remains a live ball and is treated the same as a fumble. A particularly well-known example of the lateral is a desperation play known as the _Hook and Ladder_ which is only used at the end of a game to try and score a last second touchdown to eke out a victory. It is used when there is only enough time left on the clock for one play because once the ball is snapped the play continues until a dead ball event transpires regardless of the clock, again like rugby.
Defense are more scary to wr bc they are more built than offense cuz they gotta nail the ball carrier anytime especially any linebacker. The O line (offensive line) are more muscular based on legs and chest while the d lineman (defensive lineman) are more built on their body rough nature and speed the only thing that scares a D lineman are pulling guards. Pulling guards happens when there is a typical run bc guards are the most athletic person on the line bc they are usually 300lbs or more benching like 400+ and can run pretty fast
Ya... I've been watching football for over 50 years now, and sometimes an esoteric rule will pop up that I've never even heard of. The rulebook is thick.
Two of the most common penalties called in Football are "False start" and "Holding". The offense typically cannot move (except for one in-motion tight end) until the ball is snapped. And nobody is allowed to hold on to another player that does not have possession of the ball. There are also other rules in place like not being allowed to use your protective equipment as a ramming device to intentionally knock out an opposing player.
The formations shown in this video are perhaps the simplest/easiest to explain to a beginner. On offense, backs, receivers, and tight ends can be swapped out depending on strategy; the offensive line and the quarterback are constants. On defense, virtually any combination of players can be used to counter the opposing offense.
Keep in mind in reference to your remark about the quarterback as the one who throws football, anyone behind the line of scrimmage, can take the ball and throw a forward pass or a lateral, and anyone may receive a lateral or backwards pass. This is often the Genesis of "trick plays" by the offense.
That defensive position diagram is flipped upside down, much more common would be defensive line on bottom, linebackers middle, and safety at the very top.
The fastest way to learn about the game is to pick a team to root for, then all the details will matter that much more for your understanding. Once you have chosen a team, watch the NFL game highlights here on TH-cam for the previous season so once next season resumes you will be familiar with the players and roster changes.
@@DNReacts I hope you pick the Eagles, one of the most blessed and jinxed teams. Phila fans are passionate and knowledgeable but are sometimes considered to be 'crude.' LOL If you can, try to listen to the radio broadcast featuring Merrill Reese, he has been without a doubt, a Hall of Fame level announcer for over 40 years for the Eagles but will bring a fairly unbiased opinion during the games. Whoever you pick, keep in mind that the game itself is only part of the joy. Having family and friends join you adds to the experience. Make sure to include: BBQ, tailgating, and lots of favorite beverages (alcoholic acceptable and usually encouraged :)). And lastly, you must boo the refs, question the coaches' decisions, b*tch amount the tons of commercials, and make sure to state that you could've made that dropped catch easily! Cheer from just north of Philadelphia!
In reference to kicking extra points, the offense usually has a player who holds the ball for the kicker who must complete the kick within 30 seconds. If the play is not completed within 30 seconds, the referee will call a penalty and charge the office with a 5 yard loss. They may then play the down again. An old rule that is still valid allows the kicker to complete the extra point with the dropkick just like in rugby.
Maybe worth mentioning that Canadian Football (CFL) has some key differences, like size of field, including being 110 yards long (so the middle is the 55 yard line instead of 50) and 3 downs to get a first down. 🤷🏻♂️
You need to also explain how the clock works in American football, as that is a crucial part of the game. First, there is a game clock and a play clock. Each game is timed--60 minutes for a game. This is the game clock--it counts down the total number of minutes and seconds left in the contest. Within the countdown of the game clock, there is also a play clock, which is reset after every down. Teams on offense have 40 seconds after each down to run a play, irrespective of whether the game clock is also running; this time to run a play on the play clock can be shortened to 25 seconds after certain administrative clock stoppages, including change of possession, timeouts, penalties, end of a quarter, 2 minute warning, punts, and extra point tries. A team that fails to run a play before the play clock expires will be penalized for a delay of game. If the game ends with both teams tied, an overtime period with the same clock rules will start. The clock starts on the initial kickoff when the receiving team makes first contact with the ball in-bounds within the field of play (not out -of-bounds or in the end zone)--if no one catches or contacts the ball in bounds on the kickoff, the clock will start after the referee declares the ball down, places the ball on a yard marker and signals the timekeeper to start (by swinging his/her right arm clockwise around in a circle). From this point, the game clock is always counting down from 60 minutes except: 1) when there is a time-out called voluntarily by either team, the clock will stop for 60 seconds; 2) when there is an administrative clock stoppage by the refs due to a "dead' ball (which includes some of the following); 3) after any scoring play; 4) after any change of possession; 5) when a player with the ball goes out of bounds or the ball is dropped or kicked out of bounds; 6) when there is an incomplete forward pass; 7) when there is a missed field goal that does not go out of bounds, but is not recovered by the defense; 8) 2 minutes before the end of each half (called the 2 Minute Warning); 9) during player or referee injuries; 10) whenever a penalty is called, and; 11) whenever a referee's call is challenged by either team. There are also administrative time-outs for television broadcasts and for officials to confer on penalties or time left in regulation. Understanding how the clock works is necessary to understand some of the crucial strategies of the game, such as ensuring your team can run its plays within 40 or 25 seconds, controlling the time of possession and managing the last 2 minutes of the first half or game. For instance, a team which runs the ball more than it throws it downfield will usually take more time off the clock than a team that passes a lot. Teams that have a lead in the final quarter of the game will often allow the play clock to count down to almost zero before running plays to decrease the time the losing team could have the ball with a chance to score. Next up is formations on offense and defense.
We are pretty spoiled now with imaginary lines for line of scrimmage and first downs as well as the down and yardage needed for a first down magically appearing on the field. In the old days you had to pay attention to markers on the sidelines. They're still there but usually are ignored except for close measurements (chains of ten yard increments).
4:15 the reason you need offense and defense on special teams is because you are normally switching possession. So if you want to punt the ball away, the ball needs to be snapped by an offensive player, then the offense has to block, then a kicker can kick, and lastly you NEED players who can tackle the guy who catches it on the opposing team. You really need all 3 equally. If your special teams are the worst in the league you have no chance of making the playoffs. Special teams needs to be perfect or youll lose most games.
What makes getting the 10 yards to get a first down so difficult is you actually only have 3 downs. Typically the 4th down is used to punt the ball and put it farther back into the defenses territory. If you didn't, the defense gets the ball where the last down was. Also, you can lose yardage during your possession. A penalty can cost you 5 to 15 yards, so you could have a 2nd down and have to make 25 yards to get the first down.
To your point, one time a team was so backed up due to penalties and blown plays that the official down was 3rd down and 45. The broadcasters decided to have some fun with this and called it "3rd down... and a nine iron!" heh heh
You still have 4 downs to cross the "to gain" line. How you use them is up to you. Teams can punt on second or third down if they want, or never punt at all. Just because most teams do something a certain way doesn't mean that it's required to be done that way.
@@MikeDCWeld You are correct. However, it would be foolish to punt on the first or second down and if you are 25 yards from a first down and on your own 30 yard line, you'd be a complete idiot to not punt on 4th down. On the other hand, if you're on the other team's 35 yard line and it's 4th down and 2, it's not unreasonable to go for it. However, many teams will choose to kick a field goal and get the 3 points rather than risk getting nothing. The exception to that is when you're behind by more than 3 points and it's late in the game. Then a cash will often go for it and hope to get more chances at a touchdown and an extra points to pull ahead or tie.
There are actually two more ways to score that was not mentioned, though admittedly both are EXTREMELY rare. The first is the one-point safety. If, during a point-after-touchdown or a two-point conversion after touchdown attempt, something happens that results in the kicking/offense team having a safety scored against them.. that is, one member of their team is tackled with the ball behind their own goal line, then the other team in awarded a one-point safety. You can see why this is so rare, since the only time this could happen, the ball would have been snapped on the offensive team's 3-yard line, which means that somehow the ball and/or ball carrier would have to travel more than 97 yards backwards and cross their own goal line to make it possible. Also, the NFL didn't even have the two-point conversion (a play which, one assumes, would have a higher chance of resulting in a safety than a regular kick) until 1994. The second is the defensive two-point conversion, whereby if, during an attempted conversion after touchdown, the offensive team loses the ball (on a an attempted two-point conversion) or the kick is blocked (on an attempted one-point conversion) and the defensive team is able to run it back all the way to the offensive team's goal line and cross it. In both these cases, the defensive team scores two points, or the equivalent of a safety. This is even more rare than the one-point safety. Also, it's worth mentioning that, after a safety (one- or two-point variety) the defensive team (the team which just scored the point or points) gets the ball, unlike after touchdowns or field goals, in which the team scoring kicks off to the opposing team. After a safety, the offensive team kicks off (from their own twenty-yard line) by way of a free kick, which can either be a place kick (like a field goal, snap-and-hold), a punt, or a drop-kick. A kickoff-style kicking tee may not be used. So, in this case, the team who has just scored gets the ball back, and go on offense.
This American uses the DVR and watches all games about 15 minutes after they start so he can fast forward past the most important thing to the National Football League: the commercials.
Nice video, but it left out info regarding a safety. If the offense is backed up against their own end zone and gets tackled or sacked in their own end zone, the other team gets 2 points (as mentioned in the video) but also earns possession of the ball, where the team that got tackled in their own end zone and took the safety has to kick the ball back to them.
In American Football to kick a field goal for 3-points.The ball is passed backwards,or snapped BACK too a teammate in which is called the holder of the ball.He holds the ball until the ball is kicked.The BALL IS PLACED ON THE GROUND NO Kicking Stand (or Tee as it is called in America) IS NOT allowed.In American College Football a kicking stand,(or tee) IS ALLOWED🇺🇲🏈👍
@@DNReacts Thank You!Now field goals that are BLOCKED BY THE DEFENSE CAN BE PICKED UP AND RUN BACK FOR A TOUCHDOWN.(6-PIONTS) AND EXTRA POINT CAN AS WELL. *AN INTERCEPTION,OR A FUMBLE BY ANY PLAYER ON OFFENSE ON A 2- POINT ATTEMPT CAN BE RUN BACK TO THE OPPOSITE END ZONE FOR ONLY 2- POINTS.THE SAME RULE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE. 💥 There's a saying in American Football when the Quarterback (or QB) throws the ball forward and a defensive player of the opposite team catches the ball and runs it back for a score.You will hear,or see the word PICK 6 which means it's a touchdown for 6-points.Some QB's will throw as many as 5- pick 6's during an 18- game NFL season with 2- bye weeks.Bye-meaning that team doesn't play until the next Sunday afternoon,or Monday Night.But the week off is spaced out far from one another.Some teams have thier off week in say Oct after 5- games are played.The next team have theirs in November after they played 7- games.Each team have different week off,so there will be teams playing every Sunday.🇺🇲🏈
This is an alright basic video, but there's a lot more to it. Some basics/intermediates he didn't cover: -The quarterback has a single forward pass he can use on every play, and he cannot throw it if he goes past the line of scrimmage. -A receiver has to have two feet inbounds for a catch to be valid, along with full control of the ball. When the receiver has full control is usually obvious, but it seems like there is one controversial judgment by the refs on this every game, minimum. -To be down and for the play to end, a runner or receiver with the ball either has an elbow or knee touch the ground due to a defender's action, goes out of bounds, or purposefully slides down. If a receiver catches the ball and falls, but no defender touches him, he can get back up and run. If he is brought down to where only his hand touches the ground, he isn't down yet and can keep going. -The defense is highly regulated on how they can prevent a receiver from catching the ball. If he physically keeps a receiver from running the route, he will often get called for 'holding' and it's a penalty, moving the ball to the spot of the foul. A tug on the jersey is a hold, as we all saw in the recent Super Bowl. Also, a defender can block an incoming ball, but only if he is turned around towards the ball, like he's trying to intercept it. Pretty much any attempt to hinder the catching of the ball without intercepting it is a 'pass interference' penalty, like blocking the arms or pushing the receiver down while the ball is in the air to him. To make it even more interesting, an offensive player can get called for pass interference as well, usually if the ball is about to be intercepted and he does similar things that a defender would get penalized for to prevent that from happening. -There are other situations with blockers where holding happens, like when a rusher is going for the quarterback and a lineman grabs him. Linemen are supposed to block with an open hand. -On kickoffs or punts, the receiving team has to touch the ball before it's in play. If a kicking team player gets to it first and touches it, it's dead right there. But if a receiving team player tries to catch it, touches it, and whiffs the catch or fumbles, then the kicking team can grab it and go. It's not that common, but not too unusual either and sometimes the kicking team can even run it in for a touchdown. -If a player on the defense crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped, it's offsides. If a player on the offense crosses the line before the snap, it's a false start. Either one is a five yard penalty, but if it's an offsides/defense and the quarterback isn't at risk of getting destroyed, the refs will usually let the play go on. This is a "free play" situation: if the result is good for the offense, they get to keep that result while a bad result like an interception will just get nullified by the offsides. Encroachment or neutral zone infractions are slightly different from offsides and always get stopped, with no free play I put these here because they end up being important quite a bit. There are many, many other rules that I don't think you really know until you see them get broken a few times. I'm familiar with the other football and rugby, but I strongly believe that the iterative nature of American football, and the tactics it allows for, makes it the best game in the world.
Remember that the defense can change its players and response to what players the offense has or formation deprnding on what formation the offense assumes before the play starts
That's the thing these videos don't explain, is how the formation is a tip off to the play that is coming and how it can be used a deceptive tactic. So reading a football formation is like reading a chessboard before the pieces move, it has a certain hint at what is happening but then BAM! A counter or a fake. Soccer players do fakes, but the entire team isn't in on it and knows exactly when it will happen. Amr. Football is so rigidly structured play wise compared to soccer. It requires sometimes that the entire team be on the same page about the upcoming deception. Sometimes there is no deception at all, which is another quality, you know what we are going to do and you can't stop it.
Correction to the "sack" definition. If the quarterback with possession of the ball is tackled 'behind the line of scrimage" (starting line of the play) it is a sack. If the QB runs forward beyond that line, then it just counts as a standard tackle. Note this is more of a stat thing and is only for showing how many times the quarterbacks were tackled behind the line. For instance if a running back or reciever are tackled behind the line it is just a "tackle for loss", unless they were acting as the QB and took the snap.
The front 5 on the offensive line are also limited in their role in a number of ways. They can't run down the field to block on a pass that's also down the field, they aren't allowed to take a handoff and run the ball themselves and they can't catch the ball as a receiver at all. --(exception if the ball gets tipped by somebody, at that point it's anybody's ball and both sides can grab, push and shove to get to it while it's in the air) But even still, each player will have unique assignments on any given play, maybe pulling to block somebody on the outside, or defending this person or that, or receivers running across a certain way to draw defenders out of position, and all kinds of strategies that are constantly changing on every play. That's when the game gets really deep and seeing how a seemingly simple play has a lot of strategy involved. But it still takes these amazing athletes and beasts to win each individual battle to make it all work. A good example is an older game with announcer John Madden highlighting a series of running plays with the offensive guard Larry Allen just clearing the way for running back Emmitt Smith right down the field, one play after the next. There are some great videos on Larry Allen, even for a position that doesn't actually handle the ball.
The high level rules are easy enough. The minutia is mind boggling. For example, what constitutes a completed catch (especially when landing on the ground).
For the defense, yes, the coach can arrange them however he thinks is best. The exception is on scrimmage kicks (punts, field goal attempts). In that case they cannot line up a man directly over the long snapper. The long snapper is the guy who snaps the ball to the holder, for field goal attempts, or the punter for punts. The offense must have 7 men on the line of scrimmage at the start of a play. The players on each end of the line must be eligible receivers. Any other arrangement results in an illegal formation penalty, 5 yards, against the offense. Players that are eligible receivers wear numbers 1-49 or 80-89. Any player not wearing an eligible number, on offense, must report to the ref before the play if he's lining up in an eligible position.
Great channel fellas. Yeah the rules seem confusing at first but once you watch a game or two they will become clear. It’s also hard to get used to the start and stop part of the game whereas in english football (soccer) there is no stoppage unless their is an injury, free kick, or a penalty
My suggestion is to watch a few televised pro games... the announcers are there to not only call out the play-by-play action on the field but to give you a lot of information about why a certain play or lineup was used, what went right or wrong, what certain fouls mean, etc. etc. etc. I grew up watching football but never played so if I go to a game in person, I often have an earbud in one ear, listening to the broadcast to get the extra details I can't pick up on my own.
"10 yards in four tries? That's not very far." There are a lot of teams each year who seem to find it very difficult. 😀 The offense has certain rules they have to follow regarding their formation before they snap the ball. You don't need to understand them too much, but if you see a penalty for "illegal formation", that's what that is. The defense has no such rules and can do whatever they want. Clock stoppage is very important ("time management"). There are a number ways the game clock is stopped: A team calls a timeout. (it's illegal for a team to call two timeouts without a play being run in between them) An incomplete pass. A player with the ball runs out of bounds. The 2 minute warning near the end of each half. The refs can call administrative timeouts for injuries, to call a penalty, or to discuss or review a play. Otherwise the offense has 40 seconds to snap the ball or be penalized 5 yards for Delay of Game. This is where crowd noise becomes part of the game - if the crowd is loud enough when the visiting team is on offense, it makes it very hard for them to communicate and may result in a Delay penalty.
The overall objective is for one team to score on the opposite teams goal, just like soccer instead the offense has to move the ball down field turnovers are exchanged when teams change.. there are football games that players stay on the field aka Ironman style, in 6 man 8 man and arena football, 6 and 8 man is common in High schools, arena is pro football inside a basketball arenas
Interestingly, American football allows a field goal to be scored by drop kicking the ball through the posts during live play as in a rugby drop goal. It's very rarely done, since the "set piece" kick from formation is much more likely to score successfully.
This video gives only the very basics. For example, it does not say how the rules are different between amateur (college and high school) and professionals. One thing that as soccer fans you might find interesting is the defensive formation. The one shown is a 4-3-4, which is still often played, but a 3-4-4 may be more common now, especially in the pros. In that formation the line has a Nose Guard replacing the two DT's shown and there are four line backers. Another formation is the 3-3-5 which is often used in passing situations or against spread offensive teams. In that case there are five speedy defensive backs to cover extra receivers. American football is very much a team game. If just one player on defense makes a mistake, the offense might score a touchdown. Similarly, if one offensive player makes a mistake the defense could take the ball away or a play that otherwise might have been a touchdown could be a loss or only a small gain. It often takes all 11 guys on every play to take care of their assignments.
Realistically, a team has to make the 10 yards in three downs. If they must gain more than 1 yard using the fourth down, they will instead use the fourth down to punt the ball. A team can't take the chance that the opposing team will start their offense on their side of the field, that is fifty yards from the goal. They don't even want the other team to start their offense sixty/sixty-five yards from the goal.
You can't take time kicking or doing any play. There is a time limit and it's very short, they have no time to stall. Plus the plays are super complicated, you might want to look up about plays. It actually will make the game more clear. The defensive captains and couches for example spend an enormous amount of time studying the other teams to figure out plays. The captain has to make play changes on the fly depending on how he sees the other team lining up. You might want to check these out. The first video is pretty fun!! th-cam.com/video/GKVteUGl-dE/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/cB2DpWHP7yQ/w-d-xo.html
Thank you for the comment Victoria. I (Completely clueless guy on the left) have always wondered about the Quarterback language. I’ve heard it in TV shows/films but means nothing to me. I’ve added to our suggestions list
@@DNReacts if you are referring to hearing QBs who are mic'd up on TV, their language or "signals" are pretty much code words to tell the rest of the offense what they are going to do. Are they going to run the play as called? Are they going to switch to an alternate play because the defensive scheme would snuff out the original play? When to snap the ball, etc. The verbal cadence of their signals are important too. Sometimes the QB can draw the Defense offsides (and incur a penalty) by altering the cadence or syllable emphasis of his voice.
Good on you for trying to get a understanding of American football. One thing as a football player I just found out is that of the one hour a game is and the 3hr + a game lasts is the ball is only actauly in play on average 11+ mins. I will say it doesnt feel like that when your on the field and playing the game.
Really on most areas of the field you get practically 3 downs to make 10 yards because the consequence of using that 4th down unsuccessfully is direct loss of the ball. Going for it on 4th down is almost never tried unless you 1) have only inches to go and if you lose the ball you might hold out against the opponent, say close to half-time, 2) you are behind on score and have to or you lose. 3) it’s really early in the game or second half and you’ve worked up a trick play like a trick punt or field goal and you think you can get away with it.
3:20 The defense can place their 11 players wherever they want without restriction (as long as they are on their own side of the line os scrimmage.) What you're seeing here is a just one possible defensive alignment with four lineman, three linebackers, four defensive backs. The offense has far more restrictions on how they can line up.
On a kickoff the kicking team will have its most athletic players and fastest player plus good tacklers. On field goals the defense will bring in their strongest guys to push the line while having their fastest players try running around the edhe or jumping the line to block the kick. On offense the field goal kicking team will simply have its best blockers in their w no fast guys bc they arent needed to block. Thats why its called Special Teams.
Just wait until you get into all of the catch rules about maintaining possession through the ground, 2 feet in, what is & is not a "football move", etc - might drive you mad. 😂😂
Field goals they don't use the stand, the ball is snapped, with a center allot of times specialized in the long snap, they don't hand him the ball, if they did nobody would make a fg lol..there's a play clock, you have to snap the ball b4 it runs out, kicker (unless there's a time out) not going have several minutes to prepare, he will be on sideline, kicking into a net, then on 4th down, or sometimes if times running down on game clock, any down, but on that down, the special teams run out on the field kicker lines up, they snap the ball, they have 25 seconds (maybe be 40 now) To do all that
In reality, you have only 3 downs to make at least 10 yards. The vast majority of times on 4th down the team will punt (kick) the ball because the distance to gain is too much to make it worthwhile to risk another play. Circumstances can change depending on the score, field position, yards needed, and time left on the clock. Stats show that teams convert on 4th down 51% of the time but that number gets worse as the distance needed increases.
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As an American who's grown up watching and playing American Football, you never realize how complex it is until you hear it being explained to someone who's never watched/played 😂 luckily the more you watch, the more it will just become second nature like anything else and the more you'll likely enjoy it
Haha, I love that! It’s definitely becoming clearer and I’m looking forward to the games on Sunday no I know a lot more! Appreciate the comment Pete!
Right, I got to learn over time lol
That's good point - we grow up with football from the time we're little kids so it's kind of like natural, almost instinctive. comparatively I've watched a bit of soccer and I still don't understand it much better than the first time I saw it on tv.
Rugby, there's another crazy Euro thing and to me, it looks like a bunch of big dudes crushing the bones, skulls and spines of the other guys. it's basically a group wrestling match on a football field and biggest dudes win by sending the opponent to the hospital. It's almost like combat between two competing gyms where all the gym rats throw a ball in the air and then crush and bust each other up. For sure, lot of beef on the field - or, as we said in the old days, a grown up version of smear the queer.
But Brits watch rugby a lot, and Football, while not identical, is similar enough that anyone familiar with Rugby would find it somewhat familiar.
You would think 10 yards isn’t much, but teams have a hard time every Sunday 🤘🤘
There's been some great NFL defenses that have made those 10 yards feel like 40
3 feet per yard.
It's 30 feet for a 1st down.
Especially the Jets :(
2000 ravens
The kicker is usually warming up or practice kicking on the sideline, so when he goes out there he's pretty much ready to go.
One thing that wasn't mentioned, but you guys asked about, is that there are rules regarding how the offense can line up, but there are no rules regarding how the defense lines up. The offense is actually quite limited with how they can line up, and when they get set, they cannot move until the ball is snapped (with one exception for a single motioned player). The defense can literally have any guy line up anywhere on their side of the scrimmage line, and they can jump around and move as much as they want before the ball is snapped (with some minor limitations).
Slight correction and probably pedantic. The defense can line up anywhere on their side of the neutral zone, not line of scrimmage.
Also, offensive linesman aren't even allowed to complete a catch or move too far down the field on passing plays under normal circumstances.
There’s minor rules about overloaded lines and on kicks the defense has more rules but yeah
Multiple offensive players CAN move before the snap, but they must reset before the snap, and the single motioned player, can not be moving forward at the snap, only parallel to the line of scrimmage.
That ability to move forward prior to the snap is huge difference in the CFL and AFL.
Certain defensive alignments allow more flexibility, in either the run or the pass. Defenses constantly adjust their alignment depending on down and distance. There is a lot to learn, in such an easy game! Lol. Keep watching and learning. Maybe you can join a touch football league and just learn the basics. Good luck.
5:46 Fun fact: there is a very antiquated rule that allows a player to dropkick a ball through the goalposts for a field goal, but this is extremely rare and has only been done in a regulation game once over the past 80 years or so.
Doug Flutie completed a dropkick in 2006 for the Patriots, the first one since 1941.
I love that highlight. You can tell he had been waiting throughout his entire career to try that.
As someone who has lived in many parts of Europe and Asia and found himself needing to often explain the basics of American football, I'm happy to know this (and the video you watched) is out there. There might be a few things I'd change (like, I'd want to add a sentence or two about how the clock works and the rules for a forward pass... anyone can throw it, as long as the ball is behind the line of scrimmage... the quarterback is merely a specialist in it), and there are situations (as in any sport) where the nuance missed in a summary will make some strategy harder to understand, but it is the best short overview I think I've ever seen.
It used to be harder to make 10 yards. If you look at statistics all the passing leaders, all the passing records have come in about the last 15 years. That's because quarterbacks are protected by rules from getting hurt. Quarterbacks used to get beat up a lot more, but now someone like Brady can play into his early/mid 40's
Which sucks.
Yeah Joe Montana is a good example of that he got beat to heck
Not to mention how much harder it was for receivers as well
Poor Troy Aikman can barely remember his own name from all the concussions he got.
Remember that the offensive team has only 25 seconds to snap the ball for the next play from the end of the previous play so even the kicking plays are timed.
Playclock is 40 seconds IIRC. But yeah, that's why they don't take their time.
@@GaviLazan Depends upon what happenend the previous play, normally it's 40 but it can be 25 in certain scenarios. Also different in college and the pros.
Speaking of mic'd up, put "NFL Hilarious Mic'd Up Moments of the 2022 Season!" by budleewiser on the list.
That’s going on the list! Thank you 😀
You don’t have too gain JUST 10 yards in 4 downs, the objective is too make at LEAST 10 yards to keep possession of the ball in 4 downs but of course you can gain more yards then that in any given one play which every team tries too do in order too score as many points in the quickest amount of time as possible
And practically speaking, you have to make it in 3 downs. Only in the most dire of circumstances do most teams "go for it" on 4th down.
It's possible to score a 1 point safety, but it's incredibly rare as it has only happened twice with the most recent one happening during the 2013 Fiesta Bowl and has yet to happen in the NFL
Are you referring to a kick-six on a PAT?
Pick-one, I suppose
It IS the best team sport in the world... the strategy, designing plays, trying to fool the other team, the brute force of a massive hit, the gracefulness and skill of the ball being thrown, as the QB is under great pressure, to a speeding receiver that has a defender in his way but makes the catch...the heart it takes to not only play but make your way into the huddle as a player ON the field. Best team sport ever, EVER!
Yup, futball and baseball both feel like a battle but American football feels more like a war. Each play being its own battle
@@maxwiidanen7281 it really is..and that was the purpose of the game from the start, an activity to prepare young men for war... but nothing can prepare anyone for war.
@@chrisw3421 Early on college football was like real war, a lot of fatalities and serious injuries.
Any given Sunday. The best team can lose to the worst team if the best team is not playing well and vice versa. Evolved from rugby as most know. Would be interesting to see if it spreads to UK/Australia.
Yes it is literally live chess
As he stated, linebackers will either stay a few yards down field to tackle running backs or defend against short passes, or they can attack the quarterback. When linebackers immediately attack the quarterback, that is called a blitz. Sometimes safeties also blitz the quarterback, which is called, you guessed it, a safety blitz. A successful blitz can result in a sack, but the risk you take in blitzing is that you leave some receivers open to catch a pass who otherwise would have been defended by the linebackers or the safety. So if the quarterback can throw the ball quickly enough during a blitz, he can complete a pass to an open player with relative ease.
I don’t know how you guys feel about doing a longer video, but it would be cool to see you commentate an entire quarter of a football game. One quarter is 15 minutes of time when the clock is actually moving.
The video you watched here did a very good job of explaining the basics, but once you watch a real game and hear the commentary on it you’ll get a much better understanding for everything that’s happening in a game. With your knowledge of rugby I’m sure you’d pick up on it fairly quickly!👍
There is a lot to the kicking game they didn’t have time to cover.The kicker shows the holder where he wants the ball placed when it comes to him. The holder puts his hand down in that spot and has to remember by feel where to place the ball down. The center snaps the ball between his legs while the defense is charging in on him. The holder catches the snap with both hands. Places the ball down in the desired spot. Spins the ball so the laces are facing away from the kicker. And the kicker kicks the ball. The kicker usually starts toward the spot he will be kicking before the ball reaches the holder. The timing is crucial because you only have a couple of seconds before the defense gets to the kicker to block the kick.
Thank you Christopher! That’s a lot going on in a short amount of time! Really appreciate the info!
American football evolved from rugby. In the late 1800s the coach at Yale University would make up new rules that usually favored Yale. For some reason other schools looked forward to finding out what the new rules are for this year. So the dead ball, which lead to the stop of play, later the forward pass.
Already my favorite channel on TH-cam you guys are legends 😂 i hope you guys dive deeper into American culture, whether it’s the history, military, music or sports we have a lot to offer 💯
Thank you so much! We are just getting started but yes we definitely intend on doing more sports soon!
One rule they didn't mention, when a team is called for a penalty, the other team's coaches have the option of accepting the penalty yards or declining the yards based on what benefits their team. For example: if the defense is penalized for offsides (a defensive player crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped) and the offense gains 10 yards, the offense can accept the penalty and only gain five yards, or they can decline it and keep the much larger gain
Defenses come in many different shapes the type of defense is named after the positions. For example a 3-4 defense has three down linemen and four linebackers (with 4 players deep in the back field) a 4-3 has four down linemen and three linebackers. A nickel defense has five deep backs, and a cover two has two deep backs. The defense shown is a standard 4-3 defense which is sort of outdated.
Watching plays breakdowns will blow your mind, the strategy involved is wild
The thing about 10 yards in 4 plays is that the vast majority of the time it's actually 3 plays. Yes, you always get 4, but most of the time if you haven't got a first down and it's 4th, you're better off either punting it to not give up field position or you're trying to kick a field goal.
In association football, some teams play for possession and others concede possession and play for the counter attack.
In American football, possession is life. Teams with large deficits of possession are severely disadvantaged.
Another key element is called "field position". In a nutshell, that is the point at which a team assumes offensive/attacking possession. The following is not a hard and fast rule, but it serves as a decent reference to understand field possession: every yard distant from the opposition's end zone translates to a 1% reduction in the likelihood of scoring a touchdown during that possession.
In other words, a team which takes possession at midfield (50 yard line) has a roughly 50% probability of scoring a touchdown. Field position is dictated by two factors - effectiveness of kick returners, and defensive turnovers.
When statistics are compiled, an important one is "total yards". Basically, it's an indication of the offense's efficiency. When a team has an advantage of field position, it decreases the efficiency demands. Coaches and pundits call that "hidden yardage".
Another impactful element is the enforcement of fouls. In American football, that is generally done in the form of assessed yardage. The more severe the foul, the greater the yardage assessed against the team which committed the infraction.
On that subject, players may be sent off, although there is no system of yellow and red cards. Players are sent off for very serious fouls - excessive violence with willful intent to injure, fighting, and making any form of physical contact with a referee. When a player is sent off, his team may substitute - they are not required to play with ten men.
These reactions are awesome! We appreciate you guys learning about the game. It's a lot of fun. Hopefully you get a chance to do a reaction to a live game. It's a ton of fun in the stadium, especially college games with the cheerleaders & bands & crazy student cheering sections.
Thank you so much! We are enjoying learning about it, it’s definitely a lot of fun. Can’t wait for Sunday!
Pretty good primer on American Football. As mentioned at the end there are a lot of additional details, most around penalties. But after watching any rugby fan should be able to understand American Football.
Yup. Football evolved from Rugby, and still retains some vestiges of the original game.
I’m liking the uploads, guys! It’s always enjoyable watching outsiders learn about various aspects of life over here. American Football can seem a bit confusing at first. But, once you’ve got a grasp of the basics, you’re more or less all set. The more in depth rules and technicalities can always be learned upon exposure.
If you’re open to checking out the NHL at some point, I’d *highly* recommend watching “The Beauty of Hockey”.
Thank you Greg! We are really enjoying it so far! We’ve got one NHL video recorded for the near future but will definitely be exploring more American sports in depth!
“The more in depth rules and technicalities can always be learned upon exposure.”
Great point. Just hearing the verbiage of the rules can be overwhelming, but after a few games, most of the obscure aspects are explained on the field once called, which is the best example of live, instant feedback.
Excellent point to those unaccustomed, providing a “light at the end of the tunnel” for those truly interested in self educating about other cultures.
Great video! Clarifications from Kansas, USA!
Formations: Both offence and defense can be an ANY position behind the line that they would like. Leading to some really dumb plays recently and in the past.
Roles: Many roles have double or sometimes triple responisiblities differing each play. For instance the tight end (offense) may block as part of the line, attempt to catch the ball in the midfield, block in the midfield, or (if you are Travis Kelce) catch the ball anywhere better than any Wide Receiver. And, Runningback (offense) whos primary job when not running the ball is defending the quarterback OR acting as a distraction OR as another hidden wide receiver.
Field Goal: I noticed when you were discussing the differences between rugby and football in kicking there were some misunderstandings. During a Kick off (beginning of a half or post touchdown) the kickers have a stand they post the ball on. However, duringa field goal there is no stand for the holder (usually the punter) to put the kick its up to him to do it right without one. The reason it has to be so fast (under 1.3-5 seconds) is because every play (other than kickoff) is treated the same, so the opposing special teams has the opporunity (though rare) to block or disrupt the kick. Just like special teams may fake a kick at ANY time.
Referees: Although mic'd the referees are usually only heard saying which team, which penalty, which person, whether the penalty was declined, and the punishment. There is little clarity. There is a huge push for this, but NFL referees are NOT full time paid positions year round and most of our best referees have been picked up by TV networks for millions of dollars.... because TV wants to fucking understand whats going on and the NFL can't apparently afford that.
There are some limited rules about how offence can line up. Your need to have a certain number of players very near the scrimmage line at the snap. you can not have a player line up very close to the sidelines. (this is to keep a receiver from hiding just in front of his team on the sidelines and not being seen by the defense)
I realized watching this that the rules have never been explained to me but somehow I know them all. Fascinating
To be fair, game announcers break the game and rules down pretty much every game. ESPN and NBC announcers are a lot better at doing that though. When ESPN had John Gruden doing MNF games it was amazing.
The rules are pretty straight forward. My family didn't watch sports when I was a kid. But I started watching football and figured out the rules before I was 10. That was before they put all the lines and info on the field through graphics on TV. You just had to look at the chains and figure it out. When they come out to measure you sort of get the idea of what they are trying to do.
I really love how as the internet grows we get interested with each other's football! Soccer is growing so much here in the states (everyone plays it at school and they always have but they never watched it) In the NFL comes over to Europe a couple of times a year now
The rules aren't terribly complicated. You'll find more complexity in the game when you start to learn the various positions and their responsibilities during the game. For example, what should the offensive linemen do during each play? If it's a running play they behave one way and if it's a passing play it's another way. Linemen can "pull" from one side of the line to the other at times. And there are various "schemes" defenses can use depending on what they expect the offense to do. Good video.
Thanks for the comment Brian!
Liked, subscribed, and turned on the notification bell! The rare trifecta from me. Keep them coming!!
Amazing! Thank you Elijah! Appreciate the support
It's cool you guys are trying to learn this. I wish I could watch a game with you to help explain things. Cheers from America, lads.
Sir in the blue knows more than he’s letting on. 😂
Haha! I went into this knowing a little bit and have learnt a lot already from the videos we’ve made and games I’ve watched and not to mention all the comments! My friend on the other hand was a complete novice 😂
What is so funny is watching you guys try to understand the rules and seeing what gives you the most trouble. As a Yank, I know the rules and procedures of football like the back of my hand, just as you guys would know Rugby or Football (Soccer). It gives an interesting perspective on what is confusing in the game.
I will never understand cricket!!
A very small point - AFAIK, the only official that has the microphone is the Referee. The Referee is the head official (crew chief) on the field and there is only one person with the title of Referee, even if they are all informally known as reffs or referees. The letters on the back of the officials shirts will tell you their exact role in the game, such as Line Judge, Back Judge, Down Judge . . .and one that is an Umpire. The other officials may be the ones to spot a foul and throw the flag, but the announcement will always be made by the Referee. The Referee is the only one to wear a white cap.
One fundamental rule that is not given enough notice in the vid is that the offense must line up with 7 of the 11 players on the line of scrimmage, and the other 4 behind the line of scrimmage. On a forward pass play, only the 4 backfield players and the 2 players at the END of the line of scrimmage can go down for a pass. Since one of the backs will be throwing the pass (technically a restricted lineman could throw a pass, but it never happens), there are only 5 offensive players downfield to receive a pass. The defense can use all 11 of its players to defend those 5 if it wishes, but will almost always have a balance of pass defenders and pass rushers going after the thrower.
Another small bit, once the ball is moved across the scrimmage line, it can no longer be passed forward. However, whoever is running with the ball, can pass is laterally or behind them, past the scrimmage line.
The players capping the offensive line are eligible receivers. They will usually be Tight Ends or Wide Receivers, but on special plays an Offensive Tackle, called a Tackle Eligible. There has to be seven players on the line (offense) and four in the backfield, for a total of 11 players.
There is actually a fifth way to score, which is a drop kick. It almost never happens, but it is worth two points. You have to drop kick the ball through the uprights like a field goal, but the kicker catches the snap directly from the long snapper and then drops the ball on the ground and kicks the ball on the bounce. The reason this play has nearly gone extinct is that the shape of the football has changed over the last 100 years. The ball is longer and less round, which makes the ball much more difficult to drop kick. On an aside, I would like to see the amount of points changed to four or five. This would bring back the drop kick, and give teams an opportunity to score more points than a field goal. End of game situations would become more complex and interesting.
That’s really interesting. I definitely think a points increase would bring it back!
now you guys have an understanding of how the game works, i'd love to see you guys react to best plays
Best plays is definitely one we are going to do! Thanks for the suggestion.
Note those are only common offense and defense formations.
That defense is a common 4-3 base defense. There is another common base 3-4 defense where you have less lineman and more linbackers. Then you have the nickel, dime, and prevent defense with more cornerbacks/safeties to defend when passes are expected. So lots and lots of defense formations. Pretty sure the only restriction on defense is to have not more than 11 men on the field and do not cross the plane of the ball until it is snapped.
Offense is a little more structured with who is illegible to catch the ball and how they have to line up and how "set" they have to be before the snap.
Thanks for he info mate, really appreciate it 😀
Some info on the physical characters of the various offensive positions: The quarterback is the most important position on the offense. The good QB can "read" a defense and change the play called to exploit a weakness he observes at the line of scrimmage, whichis called an "audible". All that yelling before the snap is often to disguise the verbal audible play call. The top QB's can throw the ball with accuracy from 1 yd to 50+ yds. Most Qb weigh 190-230 lbs and are 6ft to 6-4 tall and so they can see over the shoulder pads of the massive linemen. Few NFL QB run the ball except on rare occasions to prevent injury to their legs and throwing shoulder arms. Good QB will complete 60% of their passes. The full back is like a bull and is responsible for running for short yardage situations (1- 5 yds) and blocking for the QB and the running backs. Typical size is 6 ft and 250 lbs. Halfbacks are the speedy running backs and weight 190-225 lbs on average. The best halfbacks are expert at remaining behind the blockers until an opening in the defense develops and once in the open field, they are very difficult to catch and tackle. There are 5 ""interior" offensive linemen, a center, 2 tackles and 2 guards. The center "hikes" the ball to the QB. All of these interior linemen are blockers on run, pass plays, extra point and field goals. They are massive, hugely powerful men. Average linemen are 6'4 and weigh 280 lb and up. The tight ends block and catch usually short passes of a few yds to 15 from the line of scrimmage. They are usually about 6-3 tall and typically weigh 220-250 lbs. The wide receiver are usually the speediest men on the field and many have world class sprint speed. The wide receivers are usually 6-2 to 6-5 tall and their acrobatic catches make for some of the most amazing high light film clips. The wide receivers often return the ball on kickoff and punts. All receivers have to be able to concentrate on catching the ball knowing the there is a high chance that they will be savagely tackled a few tenths of a second after making the catch.
The strategy of the game is for offensive team to use their players to best export the weakness(es) of the defense. Players on offense and defense are often exchanged on every play to allow the offense to run the play most likely to get a first down or touch down, while the defensive players will be substituted to provide the optimum personal (extra linemen or defensive backs) to stop the play the offense is most likely to run.
If our Brit cousins find this info useful, I'll be happy to provide a similar breakdown of the defensive players and some of the strategies used by both teams.
This is a great breakdown and really informative! Thank you for taking the time to let us know. We would definitely appreciate a defence breakdown!
Special teams only exist usually when there's a 'formal' transfer of possession. Meaning during a kickoff play at the beginning of the halves (1st & 2nd, and overtime if needed) or when a team scores. Or punting, which is when an offense gives up possession and kicks the ball to the opposing team. And finally, when a field goal or extra point attempt are made.
Edit: one other thing that's not often mentioned, but transfers of possession happen after any field goal at the point where the football was kicked if missed. It's just not very often when a team would choose to kick a field goal prior to 4th down, basically only if time is an issue or in game winning situations.
When kicking a field goal, there is someone holding the ball, and a punt is held by the kicker. Only during a kickoff is there a tee.
American football is basically live gladiator chess ( the linemen are pawns, rooks are tight ends, knights are running backs, bishops are receivers, the queen is your quarterback and the king is your coach). Blocking (pawn structure) is super important. Every player has a number and every gap on the line is numbered. So the quarterback may call a play "32" which means 3 man through the 2 hole. The quarterback can change the play when he steps up to to the line and doesn't like what he sees. This is a called an "audible." Super tactical like chess.
Love this analogy!
Clarity on what a “sack” is: It is only considered a sack if:
1) The quarterback has the ball AND
2) Has not handed the ball to another player who has then given it back to the quarterback (in other words, the quarterback is the only player to have touched the ball after it was snapped), AND
3) The quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage (the line where the ball was when the play began).
If any of those 3 are not true, then the play is considered a regular “tackle,” rather than a “sack.” Therefore, a sack is detrimental because it ALWAYS (not “usually”) results in a loss of yards.
Cheers!
It is only considered a quarterback "sack" if the defense tackles the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage (the line where where the ball was snapped at the beginning of the play). If the QB runs and gets tackled after he passes the line of scrimmage, it's not a sack.
And making that ten yds isn’t as easy as it sounds. Hahahahahaha……you guys crack me up!
It’s really not, I tried to tell him that 😂
Adding context to ur question of the defense's shape. The general mechanism is how many guys you have in the box (in between the ends of the offensive line and about 7 yards beyond the line of scrimmage) and how many guys in coverage. In a way it works similar to world football in adding or removing midfielders to control the middle of the field, but since substitutions aren't permanent it allows the team to change formations through out set of downs. Typically 1st and 2nd down teams will option to have 7 (sometimes up to 8) players in the box since early downs will typically be running plays and gets players closer to the ball. 3rd down (or 4th if a team goes for it) is more situational and depends on the yards left for a first down, if its 3 or less teams will stack the box to deny and easy run, 6 or more (referred to generally as third and long) will see more coverage players since the offense will most likely pass to get the yards needed.
Those are just common setups for offense and defense. There are many variations within some parameters.
Another thing they didn't really cover was how the clock effects the game. Once a play is finished, the clock for that particular quarter either keeps going or stops depending on how the play turned out. Runner with the ball was tackled? Clock keeps running. Incomplete Pass? Clock stops. And so on...
There is also a "Play Clock" of 40 seconds - if you finish a play you have 40 seconds to get the next play together and execute, otherwise you get assessed a Delay Of Game penalty (the Down then advances, or you get more yards tacked on). This also comes into play with 'clock management' strategies (if you're in the lead towards the end of the game, burn up as much of the main clock as you can between plays, so there's less time for the other team once they get the ball)
This is where time outs come in. If you can't get your play together by the time the play clock goes off, you call a time out. In addition, there's an official 'time-out' when there's 2 minutes left in each half (literally called the "Two Minute Warning"), as well as other official time-outs like when there's a play to be reviewed or a referee conference, etc.
And one fun thing - if the game time runs out during the play, the game doesn't end until the play stops, so often you'll see crazy plays where the ball is thrown laterally back and forth hoping for a desperate chance to score before someone gets tackled and ends the game.
There is a big rule to lining up as the defense in the NFL you cannot line up over the center/long snapper (you can't occupy the space between his shoulders) if the play is a kicking play.
They forgot about laterals and the restrictions on forward passing. A lateral is any pass that travels either directly sideways across the field or backwards. Laterals have a couple of key differences from the forward pass. First, there can only be one forward pass in a play and it must be thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, though it does not have to go past the line of scrimmage. Laterals can be made anywhere on the field and any number of times throughout a play, much like passing in rugby. Second, if a lateral misses the intended player and hits the ground it remains a live ball and is treated the same as a fumble. A particularly well-known example of the lateral is a desperation play known as the _Hook and Ladder_ which is only used at the end of a game to try and score a last second touchdown to eke out a victory. It is used when there is only enough time left on the clock for one play because once the ball is snapped the play continues until a dead ball event transpires regardless of the clock, again like rugby.
I don't think they mentioned the safety (the scoring play) either.
Defense are more scary to wr bc they are more built than offense cuz they gotta nail the ball carrier anytime especially any linebacker. The O line (offensive line) are more muscular based on legs and chest while the d lineman (defensive lineman) are more built on their body rough nature and speed the only thing that scares a D lineman are pulling guards. Pulling guards happens when there is a typical run bc guards are the most athletic person on the line bc they are usually 300lbs or more benching like 400+ and can run pretty fast
If you’re too far away. You punt.,kick it too the other team. If you’re near the goal posts. You can kick a field goal for 3 points.
There are still a lot of rules that weren't in that video, but the basics were there.
Ya... I've been watching football for over 50 years now, and sometimes an esoteric rule will pop up that I've never even heard of. The rulebook is thick.
Two of the most common penalties called in Football are "False start" and "Holding". The offense typically cannot move (except for one in-motion tight end) until the ball is snapped. And nobody is allowed to hold on to another player that does not have possession of the ball. There are also other rules in place like not being allowed to use your protective equipment as a ramming device to intentionally knock out an opposing player.
The way you learn the game is to watch it. You watch a whole season you will know easily what's going on
That’s what we are doing. Looking forward to following it from start to finish!
The formations shown in this video are perhaps the simplest/easiest to explain to a beginner. On offense, backs, receivers, and tight ends can be swapped out depending on strategy; the offensive line and the quarterback are constants. On defense, virtually any combination of players can be used to counter the opposing offense.
Keep in mind in reference to your remark about the quarterback as the one who throws football, anyone behind the line of scrimmage, can take the ball and throw a forward pass or a lateral, and anyone may receive a lateral or backwards pass. This is often the Genesis of "trick plays" by the offense.
Makes sense, thanks for the info Will?
That defensive position diagram is flipped upside down, much more common would be defensive line on bottom, linebackers middle, and safety at the very top.
Yall are picking up on Football much faster than I picked up on Cricket whilst I lived in England 😂
The fastest way to learn about the game is to pick a team to root for, then all the details will matter that much more for your understanding. Once you have chosen a team, watch the NFL game highlights here on TH-cam for the previous season so once next season resumes you will be familiar with the players and roster changes.
That’s what the plan is, going to wait until after the Super Bowl and then pick a team to follow for the new season 😀
@@DNReacts I hope you pick the Eagles, one of the most blessed and jinxed teams. Phila fans are passionate and knowledgeable but are sometimes considered to be 'crude.' LOL If you can, try to listen to the radio broadcast featuring Merrill Reese, he has been without a doubt, a Hall of Fame level announcer for over 40 years for the Eagles but will bring a fairly unbiased opinion during the games.
Whoever you pick, keep in mind that the game itself is only part of the joy. Having family and friends join you adds to the experience. Make sure to include: BBQ, tailgating, and lots of favorite beverages (alcoholic acceptable and usually encouraged :)). And lastly, you must boo the refs, question the coaches' decisions, b*tch amount the tons of commercials, and make sure to state that you could've made that dropped catch easily!
Cheer from just north of Philadelphia!
In reference to kicking extra points, the offense usually has a player who holds the ball for the kicker who must complete the kick within 30 seconds. If the play is not completed within 30 seconds, the referee will call a penalty and charge the office with a 5 yard loss. They may then play the down again. An old rule that is still valid allows the kicker to complete the extra point with the dropkick just like in rugby.
Thanks for the info!
Maybe worth mentioning that Canadian Football (CFL) has some key differences, like size of field, including being 110 yards long (so the middle is the 55 yard line instead of 50) and 3 downs to get a first down. 🤷🏻♂️
You need to also explain how the clock works in American football, as that is a crucial part of the game. First, there is a game clock and a play clock. Each game is timed--60 minutes for a game. This is the game clock--it counts down the total number of minutes and seconds left in the contest. Within the countdown of the game clock, there is also a play clock, which is reset after every down. Teams on offense have 40 seconds after each down to run a play, irrespective of whether the game clock is also running; this time to run a play on the play clock can be shortened to 25 seconds after certain administrative clock stoppages, including change of possession, timeouts, penalties, end of a quarter, 2 minute warning, punts, and extra point tries. A team that fails to run a play before the play clock expires will be penalized for a delay of game. If the game ends with both teams tied, an overtime period with the same clock rules will start.
The clock starts on the initial kickoff when the receiving team makes first contact with the ball in-bounds within the field of play (not out -of-bounds or in the end zone)--if no one catches or contacts the ball in bounds on the kickoff, the clock will start after the referee declares the ball down, places the ball on a yard marker and signals the timekeeper to start (by swinging his/her right arm clockwise around in a circle). From this point, the game clock is always counting down from 60 minutes except: 1) when there is a time-out called voluntarily by either team, the clock will stop for 60 seconds; 2) when there is an administrative clock stoppage by the refs due to a "dead' ball (which includes some of the following); 3) after any scoring play; 4) after any change of possession; 5) when a player with the ball goes out of bounds or the ball is dropped or kicked out of bounds; 6) when there is an incomplete forward pass; 7) when there is a missed field goal that does not go out of bounds, but is not recovered by the defense; 8) 2 minutes before the end of each half (called the 2 Minute Warning); 9) during player or referee injuries; 10) whenever a penalty is called, and; 11) whenever a referee's call is challenged by either team. There are also administrative time-outs for television broadcasts and for officials to confer on penalties or time left in regulation.
Understanding how the clock works is necessary to understand some of the crucial strategies of the game, such as ensuring your team can run its plays within 40 or 25 seconds, controlling the time of possession and managing the last 2 minutes of the first half or game. For instance, a team which runs the ball more than it throws it downfield will usually take more time off the clock than a team that passes a lot. Teams that have a lead in the final quarter of the game will often allow the play clock to count down to almost zero before running plays to decrease the time the losing team could have the ball with a chance to score.
Next up is formations on offense and defense.
We are pretty spoiled now with imaginary lines for line of scrimmage and first downs as well as the down and yardage needed for a first down magically appearing on the field. In the old days you had to pay attention to markers on the sidelines. They're still there but usually are ignored except for close measurements (chains of ten yard increments).
4:15 the reason you need offense and defense on special teams is because you are normally switching possession. So if you want to punt the ball away, the ball needs to be snapped by an offensive player, then the offense has to block, then a kicker can kick, and lastly you NEED players who can tackle the guy who catches it on the opposing team. You really need all 3 equally. If your special teams are the worst in the league you have no chance of making the playoffs. Special teams needs to be perfect or youll lose most games.
What makes getting the 10 yards to get a first down so difficult is you actually only have 3 downs. Typically the 4th down is used to punt the ball and put it farther back into the defenses territory. If you didn't, the defense gets the ball where the last down was. Also, you can lose yardage during your possession. A penalty can cost you 5 to 15 yards, so you could have a 2nd down and have to make 25 yards to get the first down.
To your point, one time a team was so backed up due to penalties and blown plays that the official down was 3rd down and 45. The broadcasters decided to have some fun with this and called it "3rd down... and a nine iron!" heh heh
You still have 4 downs to cross the "to gain" line. How you use them is up to you. Teams can punt on second or third down if they want, or never punt at all. Just because most teams do something a certain way doesn't mean that it's required to be done that way.
@@MikeDCWeld You are correct. However, it would be foolish to punt on the first or second down and if you are 25 yards from a first down and on your own 30 yard line, you'd be a complete idiot to not punt on 4th down.
On the other hand, if you're on the other team's 35 yard line and it's 4th down and 2, it's not unreasonable to go for it. However, many teams will choose to kick a field goal and get the 3 points rather than risk getting nothing.
The exception to that is when you're behind by more than 3 points and it's late in the game. Then a cash will often go for it and hope to get more chances at a touchdown and an extra points to pull ahead or tie.
There are actually two more ways to score that was not mentioned, though admittedly both are EXTREMELY rare.
The first is the one-point safety. If, during a point-after-touchdown or a two-point conversion after touchdown attempt, something happens that results in the kicking/offense team having a safety scored against them.. that is, one member of their team is tackled with the ball behind their own goal line, then the other team in awarded a one-point safety. You can see why this is so rare, since the only time this could happen, the ball would have been snapped on the offensive team's 3-yard line, which means that somehow the ball and/or ball carrier would have to travel more than 97 yards backwards and cross their own goal line to make it possible. Also, the NFL didn't even have the two-point conversion (a play which, one assumes, would have a higher chance of resulting in a safety than a regular kick) until 1994.
The second is the defensive two-point conversion, whereby if, during an attempted conversion after touchdown, the offensive team loses the ball (on a an attempted two-point conversion) or the kick is blocked (on an attempted one-point conversion) and the defensive team is able to run it back all the way to the offensive team's goal line and cross it. In both these cases, the defensive team scores two points, or the equivalent of a safety. This is even more rare than the one-point safety.
Also, it's worth mentioning that, after a safety (one- or two-point variety) the defensive team (the team which just scored the point or points) gets the ball, unlike after touchdowns or field goals, in which the team scoring kicks off to the opposing team. After a safety, the offensive team kicks off (from their own twenty-yard line) by way of a free kick, which can either be a place kick (like a field goal, snap-and-hold), a punt, or a drop-kick. A kickoff-style kicking tee may not be used. So, in this case, the team who has just scored gets the ball back, and go on offense.
This American uses the DVR and watches all games about 15 minutes after they start so he can fast forward past the most important thing to the National Football League: the commercials.
Special teams consist of kick off, punt team, punt and and kickoff return, and field goal team.
Ninh has explainers on seemingly every major sport and damn near every traditional and esoteric sport too
Can also run back a caught missed fg for 1 point, or fumbled/intercepted conversion try for 2 points
Nice video, but it left out info regarding a safety. If the offense is backed up against their own end zone and gets tackled or sacked in their own end zone, the other team gets 2 points (as mentioned in the video) but also earns possession of the ball, where the team that got tackled in their own end zone and took the safety has to kick the ball back to them.
Thanks for the info!
In American Football to kick a field goal for 3-points.The ball is passed backwards,or snapped BACK too a teammate in which is called the holder of the ball.He holds the ball until the ball is kicked.The BALL IS PLACED ON THE GROUND NO Kicking Stand (or Tee as it is called in America) IS NOT allowed.In American College Football a kicking stand,(or tee) IS ALLOWED🇺🇲🏈👍
That’s great info, thanks Anthony!
@@DNReacts Thank You!Now field goals that are BLOCKED BY THE DEFENSE CAN BE PICKED UP AND RUN BACK FOR A TOUCHDOWN.(6-PIONTS) AND EXTRA POINT CAN AS WELL. *AN INTERCEPTION,OR A FUMBLE BY ANY PLAYER ON OFFENSE ON A 2- POINT ATTEMPT CAN BE RUN BACK TO THE OPPOSITE END ZONE FOR ONLY 2- POINTS.THE SAME RULE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE. 💥 There's a saying in American Football when the Quarterback (or QB) throws the ball forward and a defensive player of the opposite team catches the ball and runs it back for a score.You will hear,or see the word PICK 6 which means it's a touchdown for 6-points.Some QB's will throw as many as 5- pick 6's during an 18- game NFL season with 2- bye weeks.Bye-meaning that team doesn't play until the next Sunday afternoon,or Monday Night.But the week off is spaced out far from one another.Some teams have thier off week in say Oct after 5- games are played.The next team have theirs in November after they played 7- games.Each team have different week off,so there will be teams playing every Sunday.🇺🇲🏈
This is an alright basic video, but there's a lot more to it. Some basics/intermediates he didn't cover:
-The quarterback has a single forward pass he can use on every play, and he cannot throw it if he goes past the line of scrimmage.
-A receiver has to have two feet inbounds for a catch to be valid, along with full control of the ball. When the receiver has full control is usually obvious, but it seems like there is one controversial judgment by the refs on this every game, minimum.
-To be down and for the play to end, a runner or receiver with the ball either has an elbow or knee touch the ground due to a defender's action, goes out of bounds, or purposefully slides down. If a receiver catches the ball and falls, but no defender touches him, he can get back up and run. If he is brought down to where only his hand touches the ground, he isn't down yet and can keep going.
-The defense is highly regulated on how they can prevent a receiver from catching the ball. If he physically keeps a receiver from running the route, he will often get called for 'holding' and it's a penalty, moving the ball to the spot of the foul. A tug on the jersey is a hold, as we all saw in the recent Super Bowl. Also, a defender can block an incoming ball, but only if he is turned around towards the ball, like he's trying to intercept it. Pretty much any attempt to hinder the catching of the ball without intercepting it is a 'pass interference' penalty, like blocking the arms or pushing the receiver down while the ball is in the air to him. To make it even more interesting, an offensive player can get called for pass interference as well, usually if the ball is about to be intercepted and he does similar things that a defender would get penalized for to prevent that from happening.
-There are other situations with blockers where holding happens, like when a rusher is going for the quarterback and a lineman grabs him. Linemen are supposed to block with an open hand.
-On kickoffs or punts, the receiving team has to touch the ball before it's in play. If a kicking team player gets to it first and touches it, it's dead right there. But if a receiving team player tries to catch it, touches it, and whiffs the catch or fumbles, then the kicking team can grab it and go. It's not that common, but not too unusual either and sometimes the kicking team can even run it in for a touchdown.
-If a player on the defense crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped, it's offsides. If a player on the offense crosses the line before the snap, it's a false start. Either one is a five yard penalty, but if it's an offsides/defense and the quarterback isn't at risk of getting destroyed, the refs will usually let the play go on. This is a "free play" situation: if the result is good for the offense, they get to keep that result while a bad result like an interception will just get nullified by the offsides. Encroachment or neutral zone infractions are slightly different from offsides and always get stopped, with no free play
I put these here because they end up being important quite a bit. There are many, many other rules that I don't think you really know until you see them get broken a few times.
I'm familiar with the other football and rugby, but I strongly believe that the iterative nature of American football, and the tactics it allows for, makes it the best game in the world.
Remember that the defense can change its players and response to what players the offense has or formation deprnding on what formation the offense assumes before the play starts
That's the thing these videos don't explain, is how the formation is a tip off to the play that is coming and how it can be used a deceptive tactic. So reading a football formation is like reading a chessboard before the pieces move, it has a certain hint at what is happening but then BAM! A counter or a fake. Soccer players do fakes, but the entire team isn't in on it and knows exactly when it will happen. Amr. Football is so rigidly structured play wise compared to soccer. It requires sometimes that the entire team be on the same page about the upcoming deception. Sometimes there is no deception at all, which is another quality, you know what we are going to do and you can't stop it.
Correction to the "sack" definition.
If the quarterback with possession of the ball is tackled 'behind the line of scrimage" (starting line of the play) it is a sack. If the QB runs forward beyond that line, then it just counts as a standard tackle.
Note this is more of a stat thing and is only for showing how many times the quarterbacks were tackled behind the line. For instance if a running back or reciever are tackled behind the line it is just a "tackle for loss", unless they were acting as the QB and took the snap.
Thank you! I thought it was always called a sack on the QB. That’s good to know!
The front 5 on the offensive line are also limited in their role in a number of ways. They can't run down the field to block on a pass that's also down the field, they aren't allowed to take a handoff and run the ball themselves and they can't catch the ball as a receiver at all.
--(exception if the ball gets tipped by somebody, at that point it's anybody's ball and both sides can grab, push and shove to get to it while it's in the air)
But even still, each player will have unique assignments on any given play, maybe pulling to block somebody on the outside, or defending this person or that, or receivers running across a certain way to draw defenders out of position, and all kinds of strategies that are constantly changing on every play. That's when the game gets really deep and seeing how a seemingly simple play has a lot of strategy involved. But it still takes these amazing athletes and beasts to win each individual battle to make it all work.
A good example is an older game with announcer John Madden highlighting a series of running plays with the offensive guard Larry Allen just clearing the way for running back Emmitt Smith right down the field, one play after the next. There are some great videos on Larry Allen, even for a position that doesn't actually handle the ball.
Thanks for the info Andrew, really appreciate it!
The high level rules are easy enough. The minutia is mind boggling. For example, what constitutes a completed catch (especially when landing on the ground).
For the defense, yes, the coach can arrange them however he thinks is best. The exception is on scrimmage kicks (punts, field goal attempts). In that case they cannot line up a man directly over the long snapper. The long snapper is the guy who snaps the ball to the holder, for field goal attempts, or the punter for punts.
The offense must have 7 men on the line of scrimmage at the start of a play. The players on each end of the line must be eligible receivers. Any other arrangement results in an illegal formation penalty, 5 yards, against the offense. Players that are eligible receivers wear numbers 1-49 or 80-89. Any player not wearing an eligible number, on offense, must report to the ref before the play if he's lining up in an eligible position.
Thank you for the info Terrell!
@@DNReacts You're welcome.
Great channel fellas. Yeah the rules seem confusing at first but once you watch a game or two they will become clear. It’s also hard to get used to the start and stop part of the game whereas in english football (soccer) there is no stoppage unless their is an injury, free kick, or a penalty
Thank you Sergio, appreciate the support!
My suggestion is to watch a few televised pro games... the announcers are there to not only call out the play-by-play action on the field but to give you a lot of information about why a certain play or lineup was used, what went right or wrong, what certain fouls mean, etc. etc. etc. I grew up watching football but never played so if I go to a game in person, I often have an earbud in one ear, listening to the broadcast to get the extra details I can't pick up on my own.
That’s what we are doing! The ear bud thing is a good idea to give you more context!
"10 yards in four tries? That's not very far." There are a lot of teams each year who seem to find it very difficult. 😀
The offense has certain rules they have to follow regarding their formation before they snap the ball. You don't need to understand them too much, but if you see a penalty for "illegal formation", that's what that is. The defense has no such rules and can do whatever they want.
Clock stoppage is very important ("time management"). There are a number ways the game clock is stopped:
A team calls a timeout. (it's illegal for a team to call two timeouts without a play being run in between them)
An incomplete pass.
A player with the ball runs out of bounds.
The 2 minute warning near the end of each half.
The refs can call administrative timeouts for injuries, to call a penalty, or to discuss or review a play.
Otherwise the offense has 40 seconds to snap the ball or be penalized 5 yards for Delay of Game. This is where crowd noise becomes part of the game - if the crowd is loud enough when the visiting team is on offense, it makes it very hard for them to communicate and may result in a Delay penalty.
Greta info, thank you!
The overall objective is for one team to score on the opposite teams goal, just like soccer instead the offense has to move the ball down field turnovers are exchanged when teams change.. there are football games that players stay on the field aka Ironman style, in 6 man 8 man and arena football, 6 and 8 man is common in High schools, arena is pro football inside a basketball arenas
Arena football is played in in a hockey arena, not basketball court.
Interestingly, American football allows a field goal to be scored by drop kicking the ball through the posts during live play as in a rugby drop goal. It's very rarely done, since the "set piece" kick from formation is much more likely to score successfully.
Kick offs do use a T to hold the ball, but the ball is placed on the ground for field goals.
This video gives only the very basics. For example, it does not say how the rules are different between amateur (college and high school) and professionals.
One thing that as soccer fans you might find interesting is the defensive formation. The one shown is a 4-3-4, which is still often played, but a 3-4-4 may be more common now, especially in the pros. In that formation the line has a Nose Guard replacing the two DT's shown and there are four line backers. Another formation is the 3-3-5 which is often used in passing situations or against spread offensive teams. In that case there are five speedy defensive backs to cover extra receivers.
American football is very much a team game. If just one player on defense makes a mistake, the offense might score a touchdown. Similarly, if one offensive player makes a mistake the defense could take the ball away or a play that otherwise might have been a touchdown could be a loss or only a small gain. It often takes all 11 guys on every play to take care of their assignments.
Realistically, a team has to make the 10 yards in three downs. If they must gain more than 1 yard using the fourth down, they will instead use the fourth down to punt the ball. A team can't take the chance that the opposing team will start their offense on their side of the field, that is fifty yards from the goal. They don't even want the other team to start their offense sixty/sixty-five yards from the goal.
You can't take time kicking or doing any play. There is a time limit and it's very short, they have no time to stall. Plus the plays are super complicated, you might want to look up about plays. It actually will make the game more clear. The defensive captains and couches for example spend an enormous amount of time studying the other teams to figure out plays. The captain has to make play changes on the fly depending on how he sees the other team lining up. You might want to check these out. The first video is pretty fun!!
th-cam.com/video/GKVteUGl-dE/w-d-xo.html
th-cam.com/video/cB2DpWHP7yQ/w-d-xo.html
Thank you for the comment Victoria. I (Completely clueless guy on the left) have always wondered about the Quarterback language. I’ve heard it in TV shows/films but means nothing to me. I’ve added to our suggestions list
@@DNReacts if you are referring to hearing QBs who are mic'd up on TV, their language or "signals" are pretty much code words to tell the rest of the offense what they are going to do. Are they going to run the play as called? Are they going to switch to an alternate play because the defensive scheme would snuff out the original play? When to snap the ball, etc. The verbal cadence of their signals are important too. Sometimes the QB can draw the Defense offsides (and incur a penalty) by altering the cadence or syllable emphasis of his voice.
Good on you for trying to get a understanding of American football. One thing as a football player I just found out is that of the one hour a game is and the 3hr + a game lasts is the ball is only actauly in play on average 11+ mins. I will say it doesnt feel like that when your on the field and playing the game.
Thank you Mike, appreciate it!
Really on most areas of the field you get practically 3 downs to make 10 yards because the consequence of using that 4th down unsuccessfully is direct loss of the ball. Going for it on 4th down is almost never tried unless you 1) have only inches to go and if you lose the ball you might hold out against the opponent, say close to half-time, 2) you are behind on score and have to or you lose. 3) it’s really early in the game or second half and you’ve worked up a trick play like a trick punt or field goal and you think you can get away with it.
3:20 The defense can place their 11 players wherever they want without restriction (as long as they are on their own side of the line os scrimmage.) What you're seeing here is a just one possible defensive alignment with four lineman, three linebackers, four defensive backs. The offense has far more restrictions on how they can line up.
they need 10 yards from the line of scrimmage, but the ball is first passed back behind the line
On a kickoff the kicking team will have its most athletic players and fastest player plus good tacklers. On field goals the defense will bring in their strongest guys to push the line while having their fastest players try running around the edhe or jumping the line to block the kick. On offense the field goal kicking team will simply have its best blockers in their w no fast guys bc they arent needed to block. Thats why its called Special Teams.
Thank you Brad! Appreciate the info!
As a former center myself who played in the late eighties and nineties. It is a total elephant fist fight. Like medieval war sometimes.
Just wait until you get into all of the catch rules about maintaining possession through the ground, 2 feet in, what is & is not a "football move", etc - might drive you mad. 😂😂
We are ready for it 😂
@@DNReacts The rule book is only 200 pages.... you just never use most of that :)
Field goals they don't use the stand, the ball is snapped, with a center allot of times specialized in the long snap, they don't hand him the ball, if they did nobody would make a fg lol..there's a play clock, you have to snap the ball b4 it runs out, kicker (unless there's a time out) not going have several minutes to prepare, he will be on sideline, kicking into a net, then on 4th down, or sometimes if times running down on game clock, any down, but on that down, the special teams run out on the field kicker lines up, they snap the ball, they have 25 seconds (maybe be 40 now) To do all that
Thanks for the info. Yeah we were sort of comparing it to rugby where you get way more time to prepare for the kick.
In reality, you have only 3 downs to make at least 10 yards. The vast majority of times on 4th down the team will punt (kick) the ball because the distance to gain is too much to make it worthwhile to risk another play. Circumstances can change depending on the score, field position, yards needed, and time left on the clock. Stats show that teams convert on 4th down 51% of the time but that number gets worse as the distance needed increases.
A great video y’all can react too is “top 50 most ridiculous plays of Barry Sanders” arguably one of if not thee greatest runningback of all time