Ladies, there you are, sitting on the couch next to your father or brother or significant other, trying to watch a football game with him, or maybe several hims if he's invited some friends over.
All the boys are looking at the TV with an intensity that they normally show only when a pretty girl walks by in a bikini. There is a lot of talk about what the next play is going to be, and even though you know nothing about football you can tell they all want to be the quarterback. You want to be a good sport, so you keep watching until you see something you sort of recognize ... someone has finally scored a touchdown.
You have no idea how it happened.
Watching a football game is an intense way to spend an afternoon, once you understand it. This article will give you the quick and dirty basics to understanding what's going on out there.
The game will always start with a kickoff. The team who wins the pre-game coin toss decides who will kick and who will receive. The receiving team lines up at the opposite end of the field from the kicker and waits for the ball to go airborne. The receiving team has three options: Catch the ball and attempt to move it down the field toward the opposite end zone, signal a "fair catch" and stop play at the location of the catch, or signal a "touchback."
A touchback means that the kicked ball has landed in the receiving team's end zone. The kicker's goal is to kick a touchback every time, because it means that the receiving team will not have a chance to advance the ball. When there is a touchback, play stops, and when it resumes the ball is placed on the receiving team's 20-yard line.
The goal of the offense is to move the ball into the opposing team's end zone to score points. This is accomplished by making a series of plays to move the ball down the field.
The plays are directed by the quarterback, who is the on-field leader of the team. The quarterback usually runs the plays selected by the coaches, but if he sees something on the field that dictates a need for change, he can call an "audible" and change the play. The area around the quarterback is called the "pocket."
The ball is put into play by the center, who bends over and snaps the ball through his legs so the quarterback can catch it.
The center is at the center of the offensive line. There is a guard on either side of the center, and a tackle flanks each guard. Some plays will use a tight end on one end of the offensive line, and others will use two tight ends on opposite ends of the offensive line.
The offensive line's job is to block for and protect the quarterback so he can run the offense, and to open up holes for the running backs to run through. When a defender gets past the offensive line and tackles the quarterback, it is called a "sack."
The wide receivers flank the quarterback. Their job is to move down the field toward the end zone and make themselves open to receive a pass.
The running backs are positioned behind the quarterback. Some plays use one running back; others use two or three. Sometimes the quarterback will hand the ball off to a running back, or may pass it once the running back has moved downfield.
For each offensive team member, there is a corresponding defensive team member. In a man-coverage defense, defensive tackles and ends cover the offensive line, linebackers defend the pass and the run, cornerbacks cover the wide receivers, the strong safety covers the tight end and the free safety stops anyone who might get past him. In a zone-coverage defense, each defensive team member is assigned a zone and stops anyone who enters it.
The offensive team has four tries, or downs, to move the ball 10 yards for a first down. This process repeats until the offense scores or is forced to turn the ball over. Then the teams switch between offense and defense.
