American Football 101, Part 4: Special Teams & Coaching Staff | Thebigtip

We are now in the home stretch of our American Football 101 series . I hope if you did not know much about the game before, you can now watch with more enjoyment.

In part one of our series we discussed the basics of the offensive side of football. We introduced everyone to the positions and to some of the offensive formations.

As we moved to part two we discussed some on the philosophy behind the defensive side of football. Once again we introduced the defensive positions and defensive formations.

In the third part our series we looked at the job of the officials. We looked at some common penalties for both the offense and the defense and some common penalties.

In this, the fourth part of our series, we will explain the important spots on the field of play and the kicking game and when it comes in to play. Last we will explain the coaching staff on most teams.

Important spots on the field of play

Hash Marks- Hash marks are on both sides of the field. They are vertical marks that parallel the sidelines and are used to help spot the ball. If the play ends between the hash marks the ball is marked where the play ends. If the play goes wider than the hash marks on one side or the other the ball is then spotted on the hash marks.

Red Zone- The red zone is an area of the field from the 20 yard line to the goal line. When the offense reaches the defense’s 20 yard line they are said to be in the red zone. This is an area where most people look to see if you score more touchdowns then field goals or score at all.

Two and three yard line- The two yard line is where extra point attempts are snapped from. The kicker is seven yards from the snap and the ball is placed there. Because the end zone is 10 yards deep and goal post are at the end of the end zone extra point attempts are 17 yards attempts.

The three yard line is where the two point conversions are attempted. The ball must break the plain of the end zone just like a touchdown. If the attempt is successful the offense scores two points instead of one after a touchdown.

The kicking game or special teams

Kickoff Team

Each game begins with a kickoff and after each score and half time there is a kickoff. The job of the kickoff team is to kick the ball to the other team. They want to tackle the ball carrier as quickly as possible to make the opposing offense to have to go as far as possible to score points.

Another thing the kickoff team can do is an onsides kick. That is when the kickoff team kicks the ball to the opposing team but only kicks it ten yards. After ten yards the kickoff team can try to recover the ball legally (this cannot happen on a punt). This mainly happens when the team kicking off is behind late in a game but can happen on any kickoff.

Muff- If you hear this term it means that the kick returner on the kickoff return team or punt return team drops or fumbles the ball for no apparent reason. This is mainly said if the player does not recover the ball but can be said even if he does recover the ball.

Touchback- A touchback is when a kickoff or a punt goes in the end zone behind the return team and is not run out of the end zone or returned out of the end zone.  A touchback is brought out to the 20 yard line.

Kickoff Return

The job of the kickoff return team is to advance the ball as far as they can. They want to get the ball as close the offensive end zone as possible. They can even score a touchdown if possible.

Hands team- This is the team that will come on the field for the kickoff return if there is a chance of an onsides kick. This team is normally made up of players who are used to touching the ball and have good hands for catching and holding on to the ball.