Activities
Understanding Basic Terms of the Gridiron Game
Whether you're new to football or a longtime fan of the game, this glossary of common—and not so common—football terms provides a quick reference or a tool to learn the basics. The list is far from comprehensive, but whether you want to know the difference between an audible and an illegal formation, or even a PAT and a sack, you will find a good start here.
Audible to Draft
The first term alphabetically, audible, is a very common one. On offense, the team selects the play it is going to run, but when the players line up against the defense, the quarterback may see something that changes his mind. In this case, he calls an audible, which means he changes the play at the line of scrimmage by shouting out coded instructions.
Clipping, another term in this section, describes a dangerous block that results in a 15-yard penalty and automatic first down for the offense. A clip is when a player hits his opponent from behind, usually at waist level or below.
A
- Audible
B
- Blitz
C
- Chain Gang
- Clipping
- Coin Toss
- Cover 2
- Cover 3
- Crackback Block
D
- Defensive Back
- Defensive End
- Defensive Tackle
- Draft
End Zone to Holding
In football, the phrase "the end zone" refers to a 10-yard section stretching the width of the field at both ends of the playing field. The whole point of the game is to get the ball into the end zone—preferably by scoring a touchdown—while your team is on offense as the opposing team does everything it can to prevent that from happening.
Holding is the illegal restraint of a player who does not have possession of the football. For example, the offensive linemen are not allowed to grab and hold on to the defensive linemen to prevent them from reaching the quarterback. Although offensive holding is more common, the defense can also be called for holding.
E
- End Zone
F
- False Start
- Fantasy Football
- Fantasy League
- Flanker
- Forward Progress
- Free Agency
- Free Safety
- Fullback
G
- Gap
- Gunner
H
- Halfback
- Head Linesman
- Heisman Trophy
- Holder
- Holding
Illegal Formation to Officials
An illegal formation is a penalty that is called against the offense for failing to line up before thesnapaccording to specific guidelines. Professional football players are often paid millions to play the game—but you'd be surprised how often this happens. Indeed, theNew England Patriots—and their wily coachBill Belichick—make a habit of trying to lure their opponents into lining up in illegal formations.
The officials are the rules enforcers of the game and include the referee, who is the lead official, as well as the umpire, head linesman, line judge, back judge, field judge, and side judge. Each official has specific duties.
I
- Illegal Formation
- Ineligible Receiver Downfield
- Intentional Grounding
K
- Kick
L
- Long Snapper
M
- Man-to-Man Coverage
N
- Nickel Back
- Nickel Defense
- Nose Tackle
O
- Offensive Holding
- Offensive Lineman
- Officials
Pass Rush to Regular Season
A pass rush is an attempt by defensive playersto get to the quarterback so they can tackle him before he can successfully get off a pass attempt. The goal of a pass rush is to eithersackthe quarterback for a loss of yards or force him into making a mistake.
The regular season in the NFL consists of 16 games played over 17 weeks (with one bye week) that runs from September until late December or early January. It is preceded by the pre-season practice games and is followed by the post-season playoffs.
P
- Pass Rush
- PAT
- Pigskin
- Placekicker
- Point After Touchdown
- Pooch Kick
- Possession
- Punter
R
- Red Dog
- Red Zone
Sack to Super Bowl
A sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass. Anytime a defenseman can sack a quarterback, it's considered a big win for the opposing team. Indeed, the NFL keeps a separate statistic to track how many sacks a defensive player racks up in a game, a season, and even a career.
The Super Bowl is the NFL championship game, although it was not always so. The first Super Bowl was played in January 1967 between the NFL and AFL champions. The leagues officially merged for the 1970 season, making the 1971 Super Bowl the NFL championship.
S
- Sack
- Safety
- Screen Pass
- Secondary
- Slot
- Split End
- Spot
- Squib Kick
TD to Wild Card
The entire object of the game of football is to outscore your opponent by advancing the football into their end zone to score as many touchdowns, or TDs, as possible while holding the other squad to as few as possible. There are other ways of scoring, but a touchdown is usually the prime objective.
The wildcard is a playoff spot in the NFL reserved for the best teams that that didn't win their division. There are four NFL wildcard berths, two each in the NFC and the AFC.
T
- TD
- Two-Point Conversion
U
- Umpire
- Uprights
V
- Vince Lombardi Trophy
W
- Wideout
