Hi, my Wootin tootin Fam. Can you help me?
I watched the playoffs Giants/49'ers, and realized I knew nothing. During my bc (before children) days I was the "go to" for sports & tech (programming VCR ha) I followed from college to pro's. It's not because I thought parenting was more important, I just didn't have the time. . To give you perspective, my oldest is 24, I thought it would be like riding a bike. I have no idea what was going on. For example why did Smith of the49's have a thingy on his wrist, and constantly looked at? Safeties have they always been around and forgot about them? Can you help me by stating all the positions and what they do? and they also seem scared to make big plays what ever happened to the "Hail Mary's) Yes, I know I could have used a search engine, but it would not be as fun, or as witty. Besides The Woot Gods have been asking me to "ask a better question" and every single time, without fail, (cont'd)
by
meems212
asked 4 months ago
That thing on Smith's arm was a playlist. He can refer to it when he needs to reference a play call.
We'll start with the defensive positions, since we're already on topic.
The SAFETYS cover any wide receivers that seem to break away from the coverage of the CORNERBACKS, which cover the wide receivers.
DEFENSIVE BACKS cover the running backs and attempt to tackle the ball, regardless who is carrying it. They also sometimes cover the TIGHT ENDS and RUNNINGBACKS when they go downfield for a pass.
The rest of the defense attempts to stop the ball while it's in the backfield (RUNNING BACKS, QUARTERBACKS, ETC).
The Offensive Line:
The Quarterback - you know, I'm not even going to explain this one.
The RUNNINGBACKS will pick up the extra blocks during a pass-rush play and help protect the quarterback. Sometimes they will drop into the middle for a screenpass (short pass just over the defensive-line's heads. They will also attempt to run the ball
(cont'd) I would forget my "really good question". It has been 24yrs since last following sports, have there been major changes in football, most of what the Ump's were saying seem like a different language, I barely understood. Or is it true, as women have children we loose brain matter, I have three and Ima feared
what sport are talking about?
(cont'd)
TIGHTENDS work on the offensive line and help with pass protection on most plays. In some cases they will work down the field in a receiving position. They typically work screen passes, but have been known to go for "Hail Marys" too (Gronkowski for the Patriots).
WIDERECEIVERS will run receiving routes attempting to catch passes downfield, or to provide protection for the other receivers (or sometimes to draw coverage from another receiver).
TACKLE: Despite their name, they don't tackle anyone. They protect the quarterback from the defensive linemen.
CENTERS snap the ball to the QB and help guard the QB/RB from the defense.
The offensive line as a whole will try to seperate the defense during running plays to allow the runningbacks to get through.
I hope that answers most of your questions. That was fun. I need the practice because I've gotta start explaining things to my son soon so he won't be in the dark when he starts playing
(cont'd)
The rules are essentially the same. However, overtime is no longer sudden death -- if the receiving team scores a field goal on the first drive of overtime, the opposing team can score a field goal and tie the game, and then it goes to sudden death. They can also score a TD and win. After the first drive, if no score is made, the game goes instantly into sudden death.
There is no a review flag. You can throw the flag twice per game and they will review the play. After the 2-minute warnings, review flags are useless as all plays are reviewed in the booth. Also, ALL scoring plays are now reviewed in the booth.
Roughness of football as been dumbed down in recent years. You can no longer hit a "defenseless receiver" on a crossing route in a head-to-head tackle. Too many concussions have led to more and more strict rules around this.
Also, there is now a horse-collar tackle (tackling an opponent by the collar of their shoulderpads (from behind), and it's illegal
@capguncowboy: Thank you, thank you!!
Also, hitting the QB has been limited. You can't hit their helmets, you can't pull them to the ground violently. You can't breathe towards them (sarcasm) after the ball is released. You will receive a penalty, and a fine from the NFL if you do.
Another interesting fact is that there are 2 players on the field at any given time that have microphones/earpeices that can talk to their coach. Only one from the defense, and one from the offense at a time though. It helps with play calling and strategic clock management.
@meems212: sorry if I hijacked your thread, but I love football. And my team name in the deals.woot fantasy league this year happened to be the "Wootin-Tootin CapgunCowboys". It only seems appropriate that I answered your questions. I won by the way :)
@capguncowboy: Again, thank you. I will reference your answers when I watch the Super Bowl
@capguncowboy: All hail the Champion. His word is law. ( Until next year )
Edited for correction
@capguncowboy did a great job of explaining all the positions but for the sake of clarity let's explain that all the defensive players that play off the line are considered defensive backs.
This will include your corners which provide primary pass coverage as well as your safetys who primarly will cover the deep ball but provide secondary pass coverage for the corners. The DBs (or Defensive backs) are also known as the teams secondary.
@drunkcajun: I was going to bring up your awesome record from the league but decided not to since I knew you'd show up :)
@capguncowboy - ya'll got to let me in the FFL next year.
@nafsllib: We've got to work out some details for next year, then we'll be posting all of the info on deals.woot towards the beginning of August. It was a wild mess at the beginning of this season, but things seems to work out after the first week.
I'd love to have a few leagues next year if participation will allow it.
What is up with quarterbacks needing a playlist on their wrist?! That has been driving me crazy as I watch all these games. A quarterback plays football (and calls plays) for a living -- that's his job. So is it really that hard to memorize the different plays?
Go buy a recent Madden NFL game, the ones from the last couple of years should be really cheap on Amazon, for your PC, xbox, etc. I bet your 24 yr old can help with this if your unsure.
Playing the game will familiarize you with some of the players names, positions and teams. Probably the most helpful though is the plays. There is probably some sort of practice function in the game where you can learn the plays. If you pay attention to the name of each play and what it looks like on the diagram and as it's run you will soon be able to spot them in use on the real field. This should help with both offense, with plays like a draw, play-action, counter, post, etc, and defense, with things like a blitz, zone and man coverage, etc.
Also spend some time on on Wikipedia, there are lots of great articles on different plays, positions and rules.
@pitamuffin: Some teams have so many plays that one of the o-lineman has a play card too.
Actually most QB's don't call plays. They have a speaker in their helmet, in the NFL only, college teams still have to rely on using hand signals or coded signs, to call in plays from the offensive coordinator. Since there is only limited time the coach sends in a short code which the QB looks up and relays to the team in the huddle in more detail.
@apocello42: Good Idea!!!
Great thread! Not having grown up in the States really made it difficult to understand/enjoy watching football. I have to say it really is a entertaining game once you start to follow it.
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