Position Perfection Linebacker Manual

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Position Perfection: The LinebackerManual

Getting the Best Out of Your Linebackers

by Joe Daniel

Please do not copy or distribute this eBook without the written consent of the author. This eBook is availableexclusively from Football-Defense.com and approved associates.

Disclaimer: The author makes no claims to being an expert on the material contained within this eBook.There is no guarantee on the quality or validity of the information contained within. This information is the

opinion of one coach, based on research and experience only.




Contents

Introduction.....................................5

Chapter 1: Characteristics of Linebackers.....................................7

Aggressiveness....................................................................7Quickness............................................................................7Speed..................................................................................8Explosiveness......................................................................8Using Hands.........................................................................9Change of Direction.............................................................9

Coachable..........................................................................10Intangibles.........................................................................11

Chapter 2: Coaching LinebackerStance...........................................13

Coaching the Stance..........................................................13Get Comfortable................................................................14

The Unbreakable Rule of Linebacker Stance......................15

Chapter 3: Teaching Linebackers toRead the Triangle...........................17

What Can We Read?...........................................................17 The Triangle Read .............................................................18What to Teach....................................................................19

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Chapter 4: Coaching Linebackers to

Read the Offensive Line..................20Why to Consider a Change.................................................20Who to Key on the Offensive Line......................................21What to Look For ...............................................................21Stimulus-Response Learning..............................................22

Chapter 5: Teaching Block Destruction

Using the Rip Technique..................25 The Old Way......................................................................25Rip Through.......................................................................26On the Wrong Side.............................................................27

The End Result ..................................................................27

Chapter 6: How to Teach Tackling to

Your Linebackers (...or anyone else!).....................................................29

Shimmy Point.....................................................................29 The Art of the Approach ....................................................31Approach Angle.................................................................31

Teaching the Finish............................................................32Do Not Rush Tackling!........................................................33

Chapter 7: Linebacker DrillDescriptions...................................34

Stance & Footwork Drills....................................................34Block Destruct...................................................................36

Tackling..............................................................................37 Turnovers...........................................................................38Pass Coverage...................................................................39

Pass Rush...........................................................................40

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Chapter 8: Film Study Worksheet....42

Tape Study Objectives........................................................42Preparation........................................................................43

Chapter 9: Creatures of Habit..........46

Why are Habits so Important?............................................46How to Create Good Habits................................................47Breaking Bad Habits..........................................................47

Habits off the Field.............................................................48

Chapter 10: Building a CompleteLinebacker ....................................49

Resources..........................................................................49

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Introductionhis manual has been built over several years of working with

Linebackers. I have put a lot of trial and error into finding out

what it takes to make successful Linebackers. Our job as coaches is

to take players at whatever level of ability they have, and make

them better. Take pride in making your Linebackers, at any level,

the best player they can possibly be.

T

In this manual we will explore all aspects of Linebacker play

including:

• Characteristics of a good Linebacker. Not every player fits your

prototypical mold. We need to know what we are looking for in

a Linebacker – and give priority to certain traits.

• Get your players in the best possible stance to play a game of

football. The stance is crucial. It is the level and body position

that we want our players most comfortable in. It must match

the best possible physical position for them to be in to make

good football plays.

• Teaching Linebackers to read and react fast. No player on the

field is in more conflict than Linebackers. They are, in many

defenses, the only players responsible for both defending the

run, and covering the pass. They are the man in the middle,

who may be going forward or backward on any given snap.

Therefore, their keys must give them a quick summary of what

will be happening on the play, so they can get going fast.

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• Teaching your Linebackers to defeat blocks. Your players have

to understand that if they want to make tackles against goodfootball teams, they will have to beat a block to make it

happen. Good football teams do not leave players unblocked

to make plays!

• Teaching Tackling. This lesson on teaching tackling can apply

to any defensive football player on your team. But your

Linebackers are going to be making the vast majority of your

tackles on defense. They should be good, sound tacklers who

do not shy away from contact. But they must do everything

with safety first in mind.

• Drills for building a well rounded Linebacker. There are some

drills that your players need to do every day, and others that

they only need to do occasionally. But if you want a technique

executed right, you must teach it – and teach it right.

There are hundreds of articles at Football-Defense.com which cover

a huge variety of topics. What you read here is focused on one

particular position, and is just one part of creating a great football

defense. But Linebackers are certainly a good place to start!

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Chapter 1: Characteristics of Linebackers

uring the Off-Season, you should be putting plenty of time

into player evaluation. It is important to know exactly what

qualities and characteristics you value at each position on your

team. For our Linebackers, this is a list of characteristics that we

look for in our players.

D

AggressivenessFor Linebackers, it all starts here. If the kid does not want to get into

the mix, he cannot offer us much help at the position. Does he seek

contact, or shy away from it? Is he running around blocks, rather

than taking them on and defeating them? Bonus points if he has a

nasty streak.

At lower levels of football, a player may have just not had the light

come on yet. If he possesses a lot of other tools, keep working with

him. The switch does get flipped!

If you are at the Varsity level or College, and this switch has not

been flipped yet, you probably need to look elsewhere. If a player isnot aggressive, he cannot play this position.

QuicknessLinebackers need quickness more than straight line speed. Can his

feet react quickly to what his eyes are seeing? Linebackers are all

about eyes and footwork.

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When the player recognizes the play, can he fill his gap in a hurry?

Quickness is a big key in being able to cover downhill running playsfrom tackle to tackle, which is the primary purpose of your Inside

Linebackers. Sideline to Sideline guys are a bonus

SpeedSpeed factors into the ability of a player to pursue to the football. If

he can run fast, he can be a sideline to sideline player. While it ismore important to be a solid Tackle to Tackle player, we don't mind

these guys either.

It is not necessary to run a 4.5 second 40-Yard Dash to be a good

linebacker. It does not hurt, either.

Explosiveness The explosion needs to come from the player's legs, his hips and his

hands. In terms of tackling, your linebackers have to be able to

square a guy up, explode their hips into him, shoot their hands, and

drive him back.

Linebackers have to be able to play under control to use their

explosiveness. A few lucky, out of control kill-shots does not

indicate explosiveness (though it may indicate aggressiveness).

Explosiveness factors into not only making tackles, but also into

defeating blocks.

8




Using Hands

For young defensive linemen and linebackers, using the hands

properly seems to be one of the toughest things to do. Guys want to

throw their shoulder into every oncoming object they see.

But can a player use his hands to control a blocker? If you see a kid

scraping across from the back side, looking like he's feeling his way

past the blockers with his hands, then he's got it. Eyes up, hands

up, feeling past closed doors and looking for open ones.

If he can lock out a blocker, read the play behind him, and come off

to the ball side – he's got it. This is a hard skill to teach, and even

harder to execute on the field. Some kids are naturals though, and

it is good to find those kids.

Change of DirectionIf a player can see the play going away from him, put his food in the

ground and follow it, then he has the ability to change directions

quickly. This is another hard skill to teach (though it can be taught),

so it is nice to find a kid that can do it well already. Change of

direction is directly related to quickness.

Being able to change directions quickly relies heavily on proper

footwork. If a kid is crossing his feet or clicking his heels in a shuffle,

or turning his shoulders in a lateral run, he is going to have a hard

time changing directions. If a player has not been taught proper

footwork yet, you may not be able to judge his ceiling in terms of

change of direction.

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Change of direction is a great indicator of overall athleticism for

yours. Drills like Shuttle Run and L-Drill (combine drills) are used tofind out who is truly athletic.

Another point on change of direction is that kids who do not bend

well in their legs and hips will not be able to change directions well.

You have to be able to drop your level down in order to change

direction quickly. These players are probably also not very

explosive. The ability to bend is something that has to be addressedin the weight room during the off-season.

CoachableDoes this player take coaching well? There are guys who are very

raw, but when you tell them to do something to fix a problem, the

problem gets fixed. Quickly. Then you add another instruction, andanother problem is fixed.

These guys are coachable and they will improve quickly. Being

coachable does not mean that the player wants to, it means that he

does what he is coached to do. Many players, especially younger

players, really want to please you but just do not know enough

about their body (or understand what you are saying) to fix the

problems quickly.

There are other players who take personal offense to being

coached, and they are going to be difficult to teach. Even worse, if a

player has an attitude about being coached or feels that they know

how to do it better, it may not even be worth trying.

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Coachable players are going to show improvement, and show it

quickly. Take this into account when deciding whether a player cantruly help your team.

IntangiblesIs this guy a playmaker? Do good things seem to happen around

him? Does he have great leadership ability, that makes the other

players on the field better? There are a lot of aspects of playinglinebacker to consider that do not fit into a nice, neat little package.

We may not be able to explain why a player is always nearby when

a fumble happens, or the Quarterback throws a bad ball, but we

know it happens. Take results into account. In college I played with

a back-up Linebacker (or I should say, we were back-ups) who was

never going to win the starting job. But every time he stepped onthe field, good things happened. The QB just seemed to want to loft

the ball right to him as soon as he got in the game.

I do not believe in luck, necessarily, but some guys just manage to

make things happen and we can not explain it with combine

numbers.

Leadership is also a major component. Linebackers should be the

leaders of your defense. They should make your defense better by

their presence. They are responsible for strength calls, recognizing

tendencies, recognizing personnel and down & distance. They have

to know the situations and communicate to make everyone else

better.

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This is a short list of qualities, and many of them are simply

qualities of a good football player. With a few changes to thedescriptions, you can apply these same qualities to your Defensive

Backs or Defensive Line.

Once you determine your own criteria, assign a score of 1 to 5 for

each player and check their total score. This is a good way to have

an evaluation on your players.

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Chapter 2: Coaching LinebackerStance

ome coaches are so detail oriented. They can see every little

mistake and they need every detail done to perfection. Other

coaches are results-oriented guys. They don't care how the job gets

done, as long as the result is a good one.

S

No where on the defensive side do these differences become more

obvious than when teaching linebacker stance. Some teams will

have 2 or 3 linebackers standing at exactly the same depth, looking

like a picture out of a manual.

Others have guys at different levels, or even moving around. Their

hip height is different, foot width, and anything else you can think of

– each linebacker is standing in their own individual stance.

I believe in getting results, and I believe in tailoring our coaching to

each individual player. We have guidelines that our players follow,

to help us get where we need to be in our stance faster. But the

stance is largely up to individual preferences. We have only one rule

that cannot be broken.

Coaching the StanceWe start with the feet and work our way up when teaching stance:

1. Start with your feet under your arm pits, and balanced. Squat

down with hands on your knees like a center fielder in baseball

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would.

2. Arch the back, pushing your chest out and “show your

numbers” to the offense. The chest is big, and the eyes are up

are the coaching points here.

3. Drop your hands, and let your arms relax. I don't care where

the hands are, but they should be somewhere where you can

see them out of your peripheral vision.

4. Pick one foot – whichever one you feel more comfortable with,

and step it forward just a few inches so that your feet are

staggered in a heel to toe relationship. This is one change I

have made in my coaching the last couple of years that has

nearly eliminated false steps!

5. Roll forward just slightly. We want the weight to be about 60%

on the front half of our feet, but not so much that the heels are

off the ground. Coupled with the stagger, it is now almost

impossible for our first step to be anything but forward.

Get ComfortableNow that we have established the starting point, let your players be

comfortable. As standardized as our teaching is in the first 5

minutes, the actual stances vary greatly.

We can get the foot width wider, especially for players with long

legs (especially a long femur). I do not like the width of the feet to

get any tighter, because we risk being off-balance.

The hip height can also change, and usually needs to for individual

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players. Hip height refers to how high their waist is, and is much

more important than the height of the player – which can beadjusted by dropping their chest, something we do not want to

happen.

If the hips are too low in stance, the first motion the player is going

to make is to rise up to a position where they can move

comfortably. While we all want to stress “Low Man Wins” principles,

our players have to be able to move. To get him lower, you will haveto address his hip flexibility and ankle flexibility, which need to

happen during the off-season, not while we are coaching stance.

The hands are very negotiable, as I mentioned. I like them to be

relaxed and hang in front. But as a player, I had a weird, spirit-finger

like thing going on with my hands, a result of lots of nervous energy

(and not uncommon in other players). All that I ask is that we have

our hands where we can see them out of our peripheral vision, not

cocked behind them, and that they do not ball their fists.

The Unbreakable Rule of Linebacker Stance The one rule that we cannot break at the linebacker position has

little to do with how the stance looks. It is the first step, and

specifically that we gain ground with that first step.

Train your players to never take false steps. False steps can cost a

half a yard or more on each play, which is a huge difference in the

course of the game. Think of how many times you see guys just

barely miss a tackle – if they false step to start the play, that is the

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difference!

The biggest change for us has been the staggered step. If it seems

to go against what you have been teaching, I suggest that you only

try it. Grab a few guys, and go out and teach the staggered stance.

Tell them you are just trying something out. Run through some drills

and see what happens.

To drill your players on not false stepping, we place a step-over pad

behind their heels to start our drills. If they kick the pad, they know

they are false stepping. Some of them are really surprised at first,

but once they get used to feeling the false step, they can tell you

when they do it, even without the pad.

Getting rid of this bad habit will get your players to the ball,

quicker!

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Chapter 3: Teaching Linebackers toRead the Triangle

nyone who has designed or implemented a new defense, at

any level, knows that one of the big decisions to be made is

what your Linebackers should be reading. We all want the truest

read, that will be picked up the fastest.

A

What Can We Read?Options for your Linebacker reads include:

• Reading one offensive lineman, most commonly a Guard.

• Reading multiple offensive linemen. We have used a 2-Man

Surface read for Outside Linebackers in the 4-3 Defense, where

a backer would read the player on either side of his primary

gap responsibility.

• Reading a single Offensive Back for flow. This means that

Linebackers have to be reading different backs against 2-Back

or 3-Back sets.

• Reading multiple Offensive Backs for flow reads. If your players

can read flow, they can all key the same thing and get to the

right place.

In order to be successful, it is necessary for linebackers to read

more than one player or action on a given play. We have the

Linebackers read the back field flow first, and pick up secondary

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keys from the Offensive Line in order to get the quickest and most

accurate reads for our Linebackers.

The Triangle Read Teaching Linebackers to read the triangle is an involved process. We

are training their eyes to see, their brain to process, and their feet

to react. As time goes on we want to bypass the brain and have the

feet react quickly to what the eyes see.

When we talk about “Reading the Triangle,” we refer to:

1. The Snap of the Football. See the football from the corner of

your eye. This is not the “Primary” read, but something that

we have to do before anything else can happen. It may be

possible to play your base defense without ever seeing the

football – just move when your primary key moves. But with an

extensive blitz package, we want our players to be used to

keying ball movement to jump the snap.

2. The Nearest Running Back . The Mike Linebacker will key the

Fullback, which is easy to understand if the Offense is in the I-

Formation. The Will and Sam read the nearest back to them –

or the Tailback in the I-Formation. We will change our read

rules for certain offensive formations such as cross-keying the

backs in a Split-back Gun formation or cross-keying the Wing

Backs in a Wing-T Formation. This is all based on scouting

reports.

3. Nearest Offensive Guard. We are not getting a true read on the

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Guards, we are looking through the Guards to the backs. All

that we want to do is see if the Guard on our side doessomething out of the ordinary – either Pull or Pass Set. The

“Pretty Girl in the Mall” concept catches their attention – see

the Guards just like you see a pretty girl walking by in the mall.

You are not necessarily looking for her, but when she walks by

– you notice! We do not directly key the Offensive Line

because even though they are the best key when they do what

they are supposed to – they are often not a very clean read.

What to TeachIf your experience has been anything like mine, you have found that

some players prefer one type of read, while others are more

comfortable with another. If you are 100% certain that one way or

another (reading backs, or offensive line) is the most effective, or

you are more effective coaching it, then you should use it.

I am flexible with what our players are reading and try to teach both

concepts. Some players have preferred reading offensive linemen or

have trouble seeing the Running Backs over the line, and we will

adjust accordingly.

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Chapter 4: Coaching Linebackers toRead the Offensive Line

ver the years I have put a lot of thought into how we should

teach Linebacker reads, and up to this current season I

preferred to read running backs. I thought our Linebackers could get

a better, faster read.

O

As I have mentioned, we always give options and utilize secondarykeys with the Offensive Line even when we are keying the backs as

our primary key. But now I am leaning towards teaching the

Offensive Line as our primary key.

Why to Consider a Change

The multitude of backfield formations has made it difficult to teachbackfield reads. Split back shotgun formations are different from

splitback formations under center. The Pistol is tougher to read than

the I-Formation. Wing-T, Single Wing and Double Wing formations

add even more confusion to the mix.

It seems that with our backfield keys, we are finding it necessary to

change the reads almost every week, even from formation toformation in a single game. While the reads all make sense within

our basic structure, to our players it can sometimes seem like we

are learning a whole new defense!

Year after year, I have found it necessary to teach some form of

read on the offensive line as the season progressed, for one reason

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or another. Now we will look into making that the primary key.

Neither way of doing things is wrong, and there are more ways than

this. However, this is another option that you should consider in

how you teach linebackers to read the play.

Who to Key on the Offensive Line The first question we had was, who do we need to look at? Your

Linebackers need to have a basic rule, so that they can play any

Linebacker position without changing their job completely.

In our 4-3 Defense, our Linebackers need to be able to play either

the Sam, Mike or Will. I believe that the reads we have developed

will fit with our Over Front, Under Front, and our Odd Stack front or

3-3-5 Front. The keys we have developed should work with any

defensive front we align.

We will key the nearest uncovered lineman. For our Base 4-3 Over

Front, our Sam Linebacker keys the Strong Tackle, while the Mike

and Will key the Weak Guard.

What to Look For The obvious keys to look for pulls by Offensive Linemen. But we

want to get a definite read off of anything that the uncovered

lineman does, so these reads will take some time to teach. We have

to be detailed, and give our players the right answer for any type of

block they see.

Your players have to be able to key down blocks, reach blocks and

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zone blocks. They also need to quickly recognize blocks where the

uncovered lineman fires directly at them, which we call “Block To.”

Finally, we have to recognize the High Hat read. This is one of the

biggest reasons for keying offensive linemen. We cannot afford to

get sucked up on play action so badly that we cannot be effective at

defending the pass. If we recognize high hat reads from offensive

linemen, we will get a much improved key on play action.

Stimulus-Response LearningI have been able to spend a good deal of time listening to Jerry

Campbell talk about his Stimulus-Response learning system, which

led me to focusing on how we will read our keys and develop a

stimulus-response package for our players.

Explanation of TermsBefore we go to our Stimulus-Response learning, lets talk about

some of the terms we use.

• Tight to Color means to fit tight off the hip of the defensive

end, with no air between you and him. The phrase refers to

being tight to the person wearing the same color jersey as

you.

• Run Through refers to the Mike Linebacker taking the first

opening he sees on an outside run play. Because the Outside

Linebacker is attacking Tight to Color , his gap is now open and

there is usually a resulting seam. The Mike can expect the ball

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http://jerrycampbellfootball.com/







carrier to cut back to him if he takes this run through.

• Counter Shuffle tells our players who are on the backside to

shuffle at 4 yards for cut-back until the ball declares. They are

not to pass their gap responsibility or the Center until then. We

want them to shuffle at 4 yards so that they do not get caught

up in the mess of larger bodies at the Line of Scrimmage.

Linebacker Stimulus-Reponse The following is an example of what we will teach each of our

Linebackers in the 4-3 Over Defensive Front. There are slight

changes for each position, but the basics are consistent.

Stimulus Mike Response OLB Response

Down Block Fill Weak B Fill (Spin Down)

Block To Block Destruct Block Destruct

Zone To Fill Strong A Fill (Spin Down)

Zone Away Fill Weak B Counter-Shuffle

Reach To Run Through Tight to Color

Reach Away Run Through Counter-Shuffle

Pull Inside Fill Strong A Counter-Shuffle

Pull Outside Run Through Tight to Color

High Hat Pass Drop Pass Drop

The biggest differences are for the Mike Linebacker compared to the

Outside Linebackers, but if they have an understanding of their

position, there is less confusion. In addition, if you run a defense

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where your Linebackers have one gap, such as a 3-3-5 or 4-2-5

Defense, your keys are even simpler and more transferable fromposition to position.

Our Mike Linebacker is a true 2-Gap defender, and so where other

players have Counter-Shuffle responsibility to play for cut-back, the

Mike Linebacker has no cut-back. He is always filling to the play

side. Once he understands the blocks, he understands when to fill.

For the Will Linebacker, he always has the Mike Linebacker filling

the weak side B Gap in our defense, and so the “Spin Down”

notation refers to him. He does not fill a gap because there is not

one for him to fill on flow to. He shuffles down behind the Defensive

End, and fills the first open space he finds, working from inside to

outside.

Since every defense is different, you have to take the ideas that we

are using and adapt them to exactly what you want your

Linebackers to do. I developed these principles by watching a ton of

film from our toughest opponents last season and asking myself,

“What do I want us to do when he does that?”

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Chapter 5: Teaching Block DestructionUsing the Rip Technique

ne of the hardest things for young Linebackers to do is to

defeat a block. After a lot of thought, I decided to change the

way I taught block destruction.

OIn theory, block destruction is best done with the hands. I haven't

seen many linebackers who could actually defeat a block,consistently, the way that I wanted to see it done though.

The Old WayI don't want to cheat you on options, so I will talk about how we

previously taught block destruction first. On paper, this should be

the best way to get the job done. We would attack the shoulder of the blocker, if were on the ball side (play side) of the blocker. In

other words, if the Linebacker was already on the right side of the

blocker, he took the half-man advantage.

1. Step with the inside foot on the crotch of the blocker.

2. Strike with this inside hand.

3. Drive up through the man and explode the hips.

4. Step through with the outside hip, rip with the inside arm and

leg to get to the hip of the blocker.

5. Get into a good football position and prepare to make the

tackle or redirect.

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As I have mentioned, when we get to the hip of the blocker, we

have him beaten. On paper it works, and it should work perfectly. Inpractice, we only saw it work properly a handful of times. That may

be a result of my coaching, but the fact is that it wasn't working.

Rip Through The way I have seen our players successfully defeat a block is to

just rip past the blocker. We have always taught the rip technique,particularly on pass rush, but I have seen it be more effective in

defeating run blocking linemen as well.

Teaching the rip technique is as follows:

1. Drop the hips and get below the blocker's shoulder pads.

2. Step simultaneously past the blockers hip and dip and rip the

shoulder. Teach the backers to scrape the ground with their

hand and punch the sky – exaggeration in the teaching is key.

They will want to make a short punching motion for the rip, but

that is not enough against good blockers.

3. Clear the blocker with the rip and bring the outside foot

through.

4. Get into a good football position and prepare to make the

tackle or redirect.

This is not revolutionary teaching by any means. We have all been

taught, and taught our players, the rip technique. But that means

you will be cutting down even more time from your block

destruction teaching.

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My old way of teaching was probably more fundamentally sound,

but rarely were we able to put it into use in practice.

On the Wrong SideIf we are on the wrong side of the blocker, we are still going to rip

the block. We will either have to undercut the blocker or cross face.

That will take some teaching and experience for your players to

understand. Your Linebackers should be able to use their speed andquickness advantage on bigger Offensive Linemen to gain an

advantage here.

What is important is that you do not allow a linebacker to run

around a block, but instead attack the blocker. We cannot afford to

lose that precious ground.

Even if we attempt to rip across the face of the blocker and do not

make a successful block destruct, we can still affect the play. We

can take out the blocker, change the path of the ball carrier, and

make it possible for someone else to get there. Running around the

blocker just helps clear the obvious path for the runner.

If we are already on the wrong side, the blocker has the angle on us

anyway – we should lose that battle if we are playing against a good

football team. We just need to do our best to get on the right side,

or at least muck up the situation.

The End ResultWe are teaching our players a simpler, more aggressive, less

27




thought-provoking way of defeating blocks. That change has

promoted action in our players.

When your linebackers see a blocker approaching, you want them

to be in an attack mindset, not concerned about perfect technique.

There is a slight trade-off in effectiveness if both techniques are

executed correctly . But my experience is that the rip move will be

executed more often, and more correctly, than teaching a more

complicated method of block destruction.

It is important to point out that while this technique is simpler, there

is no added safety risk involved. In teaching tackling, we are

particular and consume a great deal of time in teaching a complex

technique, because of the inherent safety issues in tackling with

improper form.

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Chapter 6: How to Teach Tackling to Your Linebackers (...or anyone else!)

few years ago, I started teaching tackling differently. The

significant difference is in where we started teaching. In the

past, we always taught the finish of the tackle first. We would start

from a fit position and finish the tackle, then start working

backwards.

A

Our change has been to start teaching the approach to the tackle

first. After all, if any decent athlete can get close enough to be in

the fit position, he can finish the tackle. If the approach is right, we

will get the ball carrier down.

As always when teaching tackling, the emphasis must be on proper

form and safety . Never allow your players to drop their headswithout being corrected. I have kept excellent football players on

the bench, because they continually dropped their head in tackling.

The thrill of victory is not worth the agony of a visit to the hospital,

or worse.

Shimmy PointWe start teaching tackling by having your players partner up and

stand side by side on a line. One partner steps off 3 steps. It is

important that he take his natural, normal steps. The players will

not end up side by side after they step off, because each player's

shimmy point is going to be different and appropriate for him.

29




The players turn, face, and get into a good football position. From

here, we start to teach tackling:

1. Butt down, chest up, in a good hitting position. Our head is up

and the neck is bowed. We teach to show your jersey number

to the ball carrier, with hands in the 'holsters', by your hips –

never cocked back behind.

2. Lead with one foot up, then the other. The near foot to the ball

carrier will always be up. If we start with the right foot up, the

right foot will stay up the entire time in our shimmy point area.

3. The shimmy down is when we are within this three step range

of the ball carrier. We take short, choppy steps with the lead

foot always being up in front, until the lead foot splits the

crotch of the ball carrier.

4. At the end of the shimmy down, the tackler has his face mask

in the chest of the ball carrier. We tell him to have his eyes in

the “V of the Neck” which puts his head in a safe position.

Note that we have not changed our body from the original hit

position. Our hips are at the same level and our hands are still

in the holsters.

5. Players should take note of where they start this portion of the

progression. The shimmy point is where they should always

start. The rest of the approach is all about how we get to the

shimmy point.

We stated at the beginning that if a football player can get to the fit

position, he should always make the tackle. Now we teach that if we

30




can get to the shimmy point (a full 3 steps away from the fit

position), we should always make the tackle!

The Art of the Approach The only task left is to get to the shimmy point .

1. We start this drill with one partner taking his 3 steps to the

shimmy point. Early on, your players need to step this off

every time. After a few times through the drill, they should

know where their shimmy point is and stepping it off is less

important.

2. Once they get to the shimmy point, we take 5 more steps off.

3. On the start of the drill (coach command), players sprint to the

shimmy point, then shimmy down and finish the drill with their

eyes in the V of the Neck and hands in the holsters.

4. Increase the distance. We have the tackler take his three

steps, then 5 more. The ball carrier also takes five steps in the

opposite direction and jogs to the line as the tackler performs

his sprint to shimmy. This gets an understanding of how the

distance closes down on a moving target.

Approach AngleNow we add in teaching angles. As the drill progresses, we get

closer and closer to a real, game-like tackling situation.

1. We take our 3 steps, then 5 more steps, then we take 3 steps

to the right or to the left for the tackler. Start this drill by not

31




having the ball carrier move from his initial point (we will have

him walk off later).

2. Sprint to the shimmy point. On an angle approach, the player

will need to square up at the shimmy point. He should not

reach the ball carrier at an angle, but square – in the same

way he approached in our first drill.

3. Shimmy down, finish with eyes in the V of the Neck, butt down,

hands in holsters.

4. Over time we can increase distance and angle.

Teaching the FinishIf you never teach the finish, your players will still make more

tackles than if they never learned to get to the fit position. How

many players miss the tackle when they get to that point? And how

many perfect finishes do you really see?

The last thing we teach is the finish:

1. We start the finish with our chin the chest, eyes in the V of the

Neck. The hands are in the holsters, with the up foot splitting

the crotch. Getting to this position will eliminate most missedtackles.

2. From this point, shoot the hands through the arm pits. We

emphasize “knifing” the hands through the ball, which can

create fumbles.

3. Explode the hips. No body is excited about this during mesh

32




shorts practice, but we want to get, well, pecker to pecker on

the ball carrier.

4. Climb the body with the hands and grab high cloth – the two

most important teaching points with the finish. They need to

pinch the ball carrier off. It should look like double underhooks

for a wrestler.

5. Run the knees high and wide through the tackle. Keep the feet

moving. With knees high and wide, outside the frame of the

ball carrier, we are preventing his ability to spin out of the

tackle.

6. Run the ball carrier to the whistle – about 5 steps or so. The

command here is “Feet! Feet! Feet!” This reminds the tackler

to run his feet through the tackle.

Do Not Rush Tackling! Take your time teaching tackling. Be organized in teaching tackling

progression and do not schedule a 5 minute tackling session on the

first day of contact. Schedule a much longer period, to properly

teach how to tackle.

You are not only helping your defense by teaching proper tackling

technique, but you could be saving a young player's life. Prepare to

spend 15 – 30 minutes on tackling in your early practices.

33




Chapter 7: Linebacker DrillDescriptions

n this chapter we will feature a large number of Linebacker drills

which we have used in the past. We do not use every drill every

day, and some drills are either no longer used or only used for

certain situations.

I

The purpose here is to give you a number of ideas for drills, not onlyone's that we have used but how you could create your own drills.

When you are designing football drills, first think of what you want

your players to do.

What will they see? How do you want them to react to what they

see? Then create drills that recreate their situation on the field. All

drills should be applicable to what players will be asked to do in agame.

Stance & Footwork Drills1. Stance & Read Step: Good stance, back flat with eyes up and

Z in the lower body. One 6-inch read step with direction of

initial step of ball carrier.

2. Skim the Trash (Bag Drills)

1. One-Foot

2. Two-Foot

3. Shuffle

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4. Shuffle / Spin

5. Shuffle / Reverse Spin

6. Slide / Weave

7. Backpedal / Sprint

8. Cone Pick-Up: Backpedal / Sprint, pick up cones as you

come through and set down to keep body position low.

3. Shuffle: Push front knee out, slide back foot laterally, never letback foot cross over front foot.

4. Lateral Run: Cross back foot over front foot, running to the

side when needing to catch up to ball carrier. Keep shoulders

square and eyes up.

5. Mirror / Slide: Slide to keep in phase (on inside pec) of a ball

carrier. Lateral Run if you need to catch up. Ball carrier

speeds up & slows down

6. Mirror / Slide – Score: Slide to keep in phase with ball carrier

moving back and forth between bags 5 yards apart. Ball

carrier tries to get across the line.

7. Mirror / Slide – Fill: Same as Mirror Slide, 10 yards apart withfit tackle at end.

8. Counter / Shuffle: Initial read step, flow goes away from you,

counter step and shuffle in direction of play. Do not cross

center until ball declares.

9. Around the Bag: Bag laid between two player. Ball carrier

35




steps to one side, defensive man steps up to meet and shoots

hands into chest, steps back and BC steps to other side. Onthird time, finish with fit tackle.

10. Give a Step: To work footwork avoiding cut blocks and

obstacles, lateral run to bag, throw feet back to get around

bag, get back into lateral run – over two bags.

11. In – At – Out : To teach footwork for approach on run fits

and counter / shuffle. Two Linebackers, ball carrier chooses to

run to any hole on cones laid out. Playside backer calls In, At,

or Out and fits into tackle. Backside player counter / shuffles

until ball declares.

Block Destruct

1. Hit-Hit-Hit : Across from bag/sled/man. Align on left shoulder,

slide step and sting with hands, slide step off on hit command.

Second hit , slide & sting back to the left. Third hit, slide right,

sting and rip off

2. Shock & Shed: Vs. Bag/sled/man, attack from 3 yard distance,

shoot inside hand into sternum and use outside hand to control

blocker. Rip off past blocker.

3. Read & Separate: From head up fit position, offensive man

already engaged. Fight hands off and read to ball carrier

behind, rip off to play side.

4. Iso Destruct : Take on Iso block from ball carrier to his inside

pec, attack blocker and drive him back into hole, force ball

36




carrier to bounce outside.

5. Defeat the Cut : Slide and defeat cut block by striking helmet

with hands, kicking legs back to get around, regain body

position.

Tackling1. Shoots: Align straight across from ball carrier, three steps

apart. Shimmy tackle ball carrier and finish to whistle.

2. Eye Opener : 4 bags set up, ball carrier on one side and LB on

the other. Ball carrier runs to hole of his choice and turns up,

LB slides to keep in phase, approach and shimmy tackle on

ball carrier.

3. Angle Tackle / 1-Cut : Ball carrier runs at cone at 45 degree

angle, LB takes proper approach angle to finish with shimmy

tackle on ball carrier. Add in 1-cut for ball carrier to increase

difficulty.

4. Profile Tackle: Three cones, ball carrier runs laterally to one

cone, Defender takes best angle and runs through to execute

profile tackle.

5. Open Field Tackle: Align defender and ball carrier 5 yards from

LB, must execute open field tackle. Key is to get the ball

carrier down, does not need to be pretty. Expand to 7, 10

yards.

6. Shed & Tackle: Align 3 yards from blocker, 1 yard outside. Ball

Carrier 5 yards behind. On "GO!" command, LB defeats the

37




block by shooting inside hand into sternum, controlling with

outside hand and ripping off. Ball carrier runs to LB side, finishwith fit-tackle. Blocker must give a strong effort!

7. Cut / Tackle: 3 cones, ball carrier begins running laterally with

defender straight across. A cut man is in the middle of the

triangle, dives out to cut defender as he approaches. Defeat

the cut block and get off to make angle tackle.

Turnovers1. 2-Man Fit & Rip: Ball carrier holds ball in left hand, across from

2 defenders stacked behind eachother, 3 yards away. First

defender fits into non-ball side and wraps up BC, second

defender lifts and separates elbow/point from body and

punches through the football to create a fumble, then scoopsthe ball. Make sure to recover the fumble with full effort!

Switch ball carrier hand second time through.

2. Chase & Club: Ball carrier with back to defender, 5 yards in

front, ball in right hand. Runs out at 80%, defender chases

him down, secures tackle with off-ball hand, clubs over the

ball-side arm to knock the ball out and recover the fumble with

maximum effort. Don't be soft!

3. Chase & Punch: Same as Chase & Club, but this time punch

through the armpit of the ball carrier to knock the ball out,

chase it down and recover.

4. Scoop & Score: LB fits into blocker, coach bounces a ball on

38




the ground for a fumble. Shed the blocker, scoop the ball and

sprint 5 yards for the score. Get the hips down, scoop handsunder the ball like a bulldozer. At least push it backward if not

scooped for the score.

5. Tip Drill: Coach aligns ten yards from 2 defenders, stacked

behind eachother. First defender sprints out, coach throws ball

high. First defender tips it up in the air, second defender

tracks it and catches the ball at the highest point. Tuck theball and get up the sideline, first defender is sprinting to block

for him.

Pass Coverage1. Pass Read & React : Working against routes by most

dangerous receiver. Align a receiver outside of LB, LBidentifies as most dangerous. Snap of the ball, LB takes read

step, identifies Pass and snaps head around to most

dangerous, sprints to his upfield hip immediately. Use all

routes we may see. Play through the receiver to the ball. Add

second receiver and vary routes. Include walling crossers and

"In! In!" call.

1. Drop on Out

2. Drop on Vertical

3. Drop & Redirect Crosser

4. Drop & Break to Flare

5. Drop & Chase

39




2. Man Coverage vs. Back : Cover back out of the backfield in

man coverage. Do not chase into flare zone, but keepleverage. Use 2 backers with 2 backs splitting routes in

opposite directions. Stay with inside leverage on upfield hip of

back.

3. Bootleg: Stopping the bootleg pass, two backers aligned.

Backfield gives boot action, when QB boots, playside backer

attacks immediately to contain QB, backside LB adjusts drop tobootleg side. Recognize quickly, and playside must get

outside leverage on QB.

Pass Rush1. Active Hands Moves: LB is one yard from blocker in good body

position, steps and works pass rush move to 2 yards pastblocker. We will give players numerous options on pass rush

moves, in this drill they should experiment and find one or two

that work best, then focus in on those moves. We are active

hands, constantly working past the defender and resetting.

2. Finishing Footwork : Start at hip of offensive lineman, after you

have beaten him with a pass rush move. Finishing footwork to

get to QB is to plant outside foot and drive inside foot,

dropping elbow across the back of the OL to maintain position.

Alternate footwork : Caraoke step

3. Moves vs. Bags: Practicing blitz approach, working on getting

into position for the move. Blitz from 5 yards away, coming

40




under control in close to bag and using rip/swim move to get

by the bag, then using finishing footwork to get past and get toQB (bag).

4. Get Skinny: Blitz technique to split offensive linemen. Drop

outside shoulder to make your body as skinny as possible and

split the two offensive linemen to make a space. Run your feet

through and do not slow down until you clear the heels of the

linemen. Use active hands to separate from linemen. Finishby getting to QB (bag).

5. 1-on-1 Blitz : Attacking offensive lineman or blocking back,

working pass rush moves live against blocker with finishing

footwork to get to QB (bag).

6. 2-on-1 Blitz : Attacking two offensive lineman. Must either get

skinny to get past, or pick out one lineman and shock and

shed, to defeat the offensive line and get to the QB (bag) with

finishing footwork.

41




Chapter 8: Film Study Worksheetf it is available to you, film study can be a major key to building

successful linebackers. Reads and keys are all about anticipating

what the opponent will do next. The ability to see how your

opponent moves on film, what they do and what it means, are going

to only help to speed up your Linebackers and get themto the point

of attack, faster.

I

This is a worksheet that we have given to players, to keep with

them as they watch film throughout the week. The addition of

Hudl.com allows our players to study the opponent's film from

home.

We have, at times, required players to turn in a completed film

study sheet, or to complete a quiz on the most importantinformation they should learn from those sheets, each week.

These sheets are not comprehensive, only what is most pertinent to

our defense. You may find other points of study more important for

your linebackers.

Tape Study Objectives1. Film study helps us recognize the offensive play before the

offense can get going. We can anticipate, react faster, and be

more confident and explosive in our play. Film study of the

opponent is a crucial tool in our game week preparation.

2. Study the action of your primary key (near back). Know how

42

http://hudl.com/

http://hudl.com/




his actions differ from play to play. Learn his abilities and his

techniques.

3. Examine the secondary key (Offensive Line). Recognize how

their actions can take you to the play.

4. Pay attention to how other Linebackers handled this opponent.

Don't be a fan watching the game, study how other players in

your position have successfully defended this opponent, and

learn from the mistakes they have made.

5. Take every opportunity to study film. You can never look at too

much of the opponent!

PreparationPay attention to the situation on each play, just as you would in a

game. Recognize the field position, down & distance, formation,

and personnel on each snap. Take them into consideration before

every play, because these are being taken into consideration by the

opponent's offense on every play (as well as our defense). Mentally

make all calls and communicate everything that you normally would

during the play.

1. What are the runs that are intended to hit directly in your

gap?

2. On hard flow away, where is the cutback going to hit?

3. On what plays does the Offensive Guard pull inside?

4. On what plays does the Offensive Guard or Tackle pull

43




outside?

5. What plays are most common out of 2-Back sets?

6. What does this team do out of Shotgun formations?

7. What are the favorite route combinations that this team

uses?

8. How does this team use screen plays?

9. What is the role of the backs in the passing game?

1. What routes does he run?

2. How good is his pass blocking?

10. How does this team react to situations:

1. 3rd & Long

2. Red Zone

3. 2-Minute Offense

4. After a Turnover

5. On the Goal Line?

6. After a big defensive play (sack, Interception,

fumble)

11. What does the back do on play action?

12. How does the running back hold the football?

13. What read steps is the running back going to give

you?

14. Does the offense use any special personnel

44




packages? What are they doing out of them?

15. How does the offense handle inside blitzes? Edge

blitzes?

45




Chapter 9: Creatures of Habitn extremely important part of coaching today, is having our

players understand why we ask them to do things we ask of

them. When we ask them to pay attention to details, to be

relentless in the pursuit of perfection, to be punctual and to be

eager to learn and improve, they should know the purpose.

A

The ultimate purpose is to build men of character, who will besuccessful as linebackers, on the football field, in the classroom,

and in life. But why all of the repetition? Should one time not be

enough to ingrain these qualities?

Humans are creatures of habit, who perform activities not because

they are the right thing to do, but because they are what we have

always done. Football coaches put in long, strenuous hours toreinforce good habits, and correct bad habits.

What follows is to be presented to your players, so that they will

have better understand of why we work so hard on forming their

habits.

Why are Habits so Important?Human beings are creatures of habit. We have both good and bad

habits. Some of those habits were formed on purpose, while others

we are not even aware of.

• Good habits can help you reach your maximum potential

46




• Bad habits can result in failures and frustration

• You have to work at developing good habits, and breaking bad

habits, to be successful at Ellsworth College.

How to Create Good Habits• By performing an action over and over again, we can create a

habit. To create the right habits, we identify habits we need to

be successful, and then repeat the action over and over again.

• Reps! Reps! Reps! We need as many reps at full speed and

game-like intensity in order to create habits that will make us

successful at game time.

• Any habits, good or bad, will show up on the biggest stages. If

we do not fix our bad habits, they will show up when times get

tough.

Breaking Bad Habits• You may have many bad habits that are already formed. We

have to break those bad habits and replace them with good

habits.

• Be Coachable! Accept criticism of bad habits and have a

burning desire to fix those habits and replace them with good

habits.

• Bad habits cannot be broken without replacing them with a

good habit.

47




• Both good and bad habits are hard to break. They are part of

our inner fabric. It will take hard work and commitment tobecome the best player, student, and person you can be.

Habits off the Field• You need to create good habits off the field as well as on the

field.

• Attend class every day. Be sure to communicate with your

teachers whenever you need help.

• Set daily study time for each class and be consistent in your

work.

• Keep your work and schedule organized. Do not miss due

dates, deadlines, or meetings for any reason!

48




Chapter 10: Building a CompleteLinebacker

his manual is by no means a complete guide to creating the

perfect Linebacker. For one, it does not take into account your

specific system, situation or coaching style. For that, you are on

your own to discover what is best for you and your team.

T

In addition, we have not even touched some of the more peripheralaspects of playing Linebacker. These include techniques like how to

blitz, how to drop into zone coverage, teaching proper footwork,

playing man coverage and more.

Resources

Many of theses techniques are up to your own unique system, whileothers are more specific. You can find guidance on these matters by

visiting Football-Defense.com.

Purchasing a membership to Football-Defense.com will give you

access to over 250 articles on coaching defensive football.

For more information on specific schemes and techniques, view

these materials:

Coaching Football's 4-2-5 Defense

Installing Football's 4-3 Over Defensive Front

Dominating Football Defense with the Zone Blitz

The Complete Guide to Defending the Spread Offense

49

http://football-defense.com/


http://football-defense.com/





And for a plethora of information on all defenses including the 3-4,

3-3-5, 4-3, 4-2-5, 46 Bear, Double Eagle Flex, monthly Online ClinicSessions, and more, try a membership to Football-Defense.com.



Position Perfection Linebacker Manual

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teaching linebackers

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