Zone blocking rules pdf

Warroom eagle explains the rules and techniques for the inside zone, a play that auburn used as a building block for the entire offense. In this video, legendary college coach chris ault takes you through some of his favorite sled drills he used to teach the zone running game. Just like the inside zone, the outside zone utilizes a full zone scheme. The only run through scenario that has been problematic over the years is the playside inside linebacker in a 44 front. The aiming point for the runningbacks remain about the same. The zone runs or zone blocking are the run blocking concepts made famous recently by the denver broncos under mike shannahan. The base block is the heart of any blockingscheme and the most important to mas. It is used for an outside zone play and or when the blocker is uncovered. To be effective in a zone blocking scheme players must rep all of the various 2v2 and 3v3 combinations daily. Chip kellys numerical system to zone blocking breaking. Zone blocking drill offensive line drills krausko llc. Same covered and uncovered rules are applied, but the uncovered man helps the next teammate away from playside. Block mdm stay alert for bubble tags or audible ol zone combo covered uncovered rules f agap to agap run primary 1back formation open flat, cross qb at inside hip of playside guard read zone combo on 1st dl playside.

The blocking techniques, though, are different, as the plays are designed to get the defense moving laterally across the. As a general rule, the first defender outside of the hole number called is. Again, the lineman should drill these techniques on a. The basics of auburns inside zone run college and magnolia. Why the inside zone scheme is all you need ron mckie. Inside zone blocking rules allow linemen to use the movement and attack angles of the defenders against them. Helmet placement is more critical in zone blocking than footwork. Zone blocking schemes zone based blocking schemes have become the primary blocking scheme of many modern day football teams. Our inside zone blocking principle requires linemen to block a particular man first and to zone if uncovered. In mechanigrama, lineman a4 was inside the freeblocking zone at the snap. The single most basic rule of zone blocking is that you block the first person to cross your face. As you can see, theres a lot you can do with inside zone, and you only have to teach your offensive lineman one blocking scheme and two tags. This play has to work before reads and fakes are added to. In mechanigramb, blitzing linebacker b5 was not in the freeblocking zone at the snap and was not a lineman.

In this zone blocking scheme, there are only two different reads the linemen must make. Coaches use the colt blocking dummy to train lineman on proper pad level and hand placement in zone blocking drills, such as the 2 on 2 blocking drill on display in the video below. On zone plays, the linemen keep the same blocking schemes, regardless of how many tightends or wide receivers they use. The culmination of these steps, rules and blocking combinations is two major plays in the zone blocking scheme, the inside zone and the outside zone or zone stretch. Understanding the zone blocking scheme field gulls. The easiest way to know if a team is using a zone blocking system or a man. Offensive linemen, when facing twisting defensive linemen, can also either lock on mantoman or pass it off in a zone concept. Used for outside zone blocking when covered with a head updefender. Zone blocking is designed around the run game, though there are aspects of the system that work in pass blocking as well. Differences between the zone and power running schemes. Simple blocking rules can take an offensive line a long way. If they are covered like the tackles and center in the diagram, they think stretch and block. Thats why virtually every team runs it and why so many rely upon it to be the foundation of their offensive system. A quick primer on the inside zone the iz is an inside run play predicated on inducing the defense to overpursue a play in an effort to stop the ball carrier from reaching the perimeter.

The offensive line typically flows to one side of the field in unison, with blocking responsibilities developing as. The outside zone uses the same blocking rules as the inside zone. Offensive line drills how to teach zone blocking with the sled. Whichever way the defender chooses to go, he is sealed off and the running back is prepared to cut off the block. Pass blocking zone or man zonelocking or manlocking principles may also be applied to pass blocking. Many zone teams begin by focusing on the outside zone. Executing the zone blocking scheme requires specific footwork depending on the play call and the defensive alignment. These are similar to inside zone rules in that they use the covereduncovered read and playside direction. He can be accounted for with a fullback or hback block, a qb boot action a zone read or perhaps an orbit or jet motion by a wide receiver. The inside and outside zone blocking scheme is easy to teach, its highly versatile, and it can create easy double teams on the line of scrimmage. The linemen still count their defenders to the play side when determining their responsibilities.

It combines playside linemen blocking to their backside gap and backside linemen pulling to the playside. Zone blocking also requires that offensive lineman understand when to release. Once that is established and the defense is flowing fast to the sideline, the offense comes back with the. Alex gibbs did not invent the zone blocking scheme. Stake technique used on bs of zone or both fs and bs of outside zone run plays rtb prototypical offensive lineman an offensive lineman needs to be an athlete that can run and move both for line of scrimmage contact and open field. The outside zone allows an offense to do this in a variety of different ways. This offseason, however, i received requests to explain the scheme again. Below i will explain the chip kelly method and than i will explain the differences in the 2 systems and why it makes the blocking not only easier for the players but the play calling easier for the coaches. Whats most effective about teaching this methodology is that the front that the defense presents is irrelevant. Below, i explain how that method translate into oneonone blocks in the inside zone. Blocking rules to really simplify this section, well treat the entire line as if its the same, rather than splitting apart the front side and back side of the ol. When blocking the sled we set our linemen in different positions so that they may take all the various steps they will use when blocking our inside zone play.

Zone blocking is a running scheme in which the offensive linemen block gaps, rather than a power blocking scheme where each lineman is responsible for a specific defender. Teaching running backs how to run the inside zone fishduck. Zone blocking is simply a style of blocking that allows for. Zone blocking in the running game is when two or three offensive linemen work in tandem as opposed to each offensive lineman having a specific, predetermined man to block. Its origins go way back to the postwwii era of football, if not further, and it was popularized in the nfl in cincinnati in the late 1980s. When the playside guard reaches the 3technique and the playside tackle laterally displaces himself to combo the 7tech on the tes backside. A very simple explanation of the zone runs, and the. The best part about the outside zone scheme is that it can be used in a multitude of different ways to attack the defense. It extends 4 yards laterally on either side of the ball, and 3 yards behind each line of scrimmage. See how auburn and oklahoma tweak their zone blocking schemes. To start off, we will set up a basic strong right formation with a single back, bas favorite.

Mark schofield looks at the dominant iowa run game, and how the hawkeyes use a simple zone blocking scheme, with complicated variations. So with tennessee adopting a 100% zone blocking scheme, i felt it was a good time to go through some of the basic concepts of zone blocking so that we can have a more intelligent conversation on it. The 2012 rushing attack that made washington one of the best offenses in. Because of the simple nature of inside zone blocking and the fact that it targets the middle of the field as well as most any run scheme available, inside zone is easily adaptable to any formation, style, or playmaker. We use the sled, chutes and boards to teach the proper technique. The ultimate guide to inside zone blocking share tweet buffer print email. The zone scheme should be able to handle all zone pressures and run through.

Why almost every team runs inside zone football study hall. Installation of the inside zone play prior to teaching the zone progression, we teach an individual drive block. We are going to put in a new running scheme that will work against anything. Freeblocking zone and legal blocking the freeblocking zone is a rectangular area established when the ball is snapped. Even front 14 23 zone from multiple formations 15 24 zone 16 24 zone from multiple formations 17 slot 24 zone read vs. The purpose is to stop penetration, create move ment on the first level, and seal off the playside or filling linebacker on the second level. Alignment rules alignment is the first thing i look at when judging a teams discipline and attention to detail. Once linemen have sound blocking fundamentals, they are ready to move on to basic 2on2 zone blocking drills. Developing offensive linemen for the zone scheme fishduck. Design your scheme and blocking rules to match and reflect the blocking techniques youre asking the offensive players to execute. Key get head inside hole with shoulders square and power foot forward on ground. The ultimate guide to inside zone blocking pro style spread.

Track zone counter and lead zone blocking away from the play side. A primary goal of almost all offenses is to get the ball to a speedy player in space. We are always going to pull to get numbers at the point of attack or trap, but we arent going to expect. The ultimate guide to inside zone blocking pro style. Zone blocking works great in the nfl with world class athletes, but like the 25 yard out pattern or the 55 yard field goal, it doesnt translate well into the youth level. Blocking rules 5 blocking cues 6 blocking cues cont. Effective zone blocking techniques in the running game. In this weeks class we will try to explain zone blocking by the offense and why it has become a common scheme used to run the football. In 2016, we originally wrote a football 101 breakdown of the zone blocking scheme. Sure, some teams have chosen to man block the play, 73.