American Football

History
Both American football and soccer have their origins in varieties of football played in the United Kingdom
in the mid-19th century, and American football is directly descended from rugby football.
football.
Rutgers University and Princeton University, played the first game of college football on Nov. 6, 1869, in
New Brunswick, N.J. Rutgers won that first game, 6-4.
In 1876 the first rules for American football were written. Walter Camp known as the father of American
football, first became involved with the game.

Encouraged by Yale University's

University's Walter Camp,
Camp, the schools began to adopt rules that would differentiate
American football from rugby in the 1880s. The scrimmage was introduced in 1880 and the system of
downs in 1882.
By the turn of the 20th century, football had became notoriously dangerous; 18 college players died in
1905 alone. Colleges responded with a series of rule changes to open up the game, most importantly
the forward pass, along with outlawing dangerous formations such as the "flying wedge", and
introducing and requiring better equipment such as helmets.

1892
An intense competition between two Pittsburgh-area clubs, the Allegheny Athletic Association (AAA)
and the Pittsburgh Athletic Club (PAC), led to the making of the first professional football player.
Former Yale All-America guard William (Pudge) Heffelfinger was paid $500 by the AAA to play in a
game against the PAC, becoming the first person to be paid to play football, November 12. The AAA
won the game 4-0 when Heffelfinger picked up a PAC fumble and ran 35 yards for a touchdown.

1895
John Brallier became the first football player to openly turn pro, accepting $10 and expenses to play for
the Latrobe YMCA against the Jeannette Athletic Club
1898
A touchdown was changed from 4 points to 5
1906
The forward pass was legalized

The game had achieved its modern form by 1912, when the field was changed to its current size, the
value of a touchdown increased to 6 points, and a fourth down added to each possession.
Professional football developed in the mill towns of Pennsylvania and the American Midwest in the early
years of the 20th century.

The NFL was founded in 1920 in Canton, Ohio.

Ohio. Professional football remained a largely regional sport of
secondary importance until World War II.
II. Television broadcasts greatly enhanced NFL football's
national appeal, and the pro game surpassed both college football and baseball in popularity in the
1960s.
The first Super Bowl - between the champions of the NFL and the rival American Football League - was
played in 1967, and the two leagues merged in 1970.

There are many ways to stop your opponent…

opponent…

And there is no time to look down

Rules
The object of the game is to score points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone.
Points can be scored in a variety of ways, including carrying the ball over the goal line, throwing the ball to
another player past the goal line or kicking it through the goal posts.
American football is played on a rectangular field 120 yards (110 meters)
meters) long by 53 1/3 yards (49 meters)
wide. The longer boundary lines are sidelines,
sidelines, while the shorter boundary lines are end lines.
lines. Near
each end of the field is a goal line;
line; they are 100 yards apart. A scoring area called an end zone
extends 10 yards beyond each goal line to each end line

At the back of each end zone are two goal posts (also called uprights).
uprights). The posts are connected by a
crossbar 3 m from the ground.
Although each team has 11 players on the field at a time, teams substitute for any or all of their
players. As a result, players have very specialized roles, and almost all of the 46 active players on an
NFL team will play in any given game. Thus, teams are divided into three separate units: the offense,
the defense and the special teams ( the units that handle kickoffs, punts, free kicks and field goal
attempts ).

Game duration
A standard football game consists of four 15-minute quarters, with a half-time intermission after the
second quarter.
The clock stops after certain plays; therefore, a game can last considerably longer (often more than three
hours in real time).
If an NFL game is tied after four quarters, the teams play an additional period lasting up to 15 minutes. In
an NFL overtime game, the first team that scores wins - this is referred to as sudden death.
death. In a
regular-season NFL game, if neither team scores in overtime, the game is a tie.
Advancing the ball
The team that takes possession of the ball (the offense) has four attempts, called downs,
downs, to advance the
ball 10 yards towards their opponent's (the defense's) end zone. When the offense gains 10 yards, it
gets a first down, or another set of four downs to gain 10 yards. If the offense fails to gain a first down
(10 yards) after 4 downs, it loses possession of the ball.
Except at the beginning of halves and after scores, the ball is always put into play by a snap ( center).
Offensive players line up facing defensive players at the line of scrimmage (the position on the field
where the play begins). One offensive player, the center,
center, then passes (or "snaps") the ball between his
legs to a teammate, usually the quarterback.
quarterback.
Players can then advance the ball in two ways:

By running with the ball, also known as rushing.

rushing. One ball-carrier can hand the ball to another; this is
known as a handoff.
By throwing the ball to a teammate, known as a forward pass or as passing the football. The offense can
throw the ball forward only once on a play and only from behind the line of scrimmage. The ball can be
thrown, pitched, or tossed sideways or backwards at any time. This type of pass is known as a lateral.
lateral.

A down ends, and the ball becomes dead, after any of the following:

The player with the ball is forced to the ground (tackled) or has his forward progress halted by members of
the other team (as determined by an official).
official).
A forward pass flies out of bounds or touches the ground before it is caught. This is known as an
incomplete pass.
pass. The ball is returned to the original line of scrimmage for the next down.
The ball or the player with the ball goes beyond the dimensions of the field (out of bounds).
A team scores
A team scores points by the following plays:

A touchdown (TD) is worth 6 points. It is scored when a player runs the ball into or catches a pass in his
opponent's end zone.
After a touchdown, the scoring team attempts a conversion The ball is placed at the other team's 2-
yard line . The team can attempt to kick it over the crossbar and through the goal posts in the
manner of a field goal for 1 point (an extra point or point after touchdown (PAT)), or run or pass it
into the end zone in the manner of a touchdown for 2 points (a two-point conversion).
conversion).
A field goal (FG) is worth 3 points, and it is scored by kicking the ball over the crossbar and through the
goal posts. Field goals may be placekicked (kicked when the ball is held vertically against the ground
by a teammate) or drop-kicked.
drop-kicked.
A safety is worth 2 points. A safety is scored by the defense when the offensive player in possession of
the ball is forced back into his own end zone and is tackled there, fumbles the ball out of the end zone,
or commits intentional grounding in the end zone.
Kickoffs and free kicks

Each half begins with a kickoff.

kickoff. Teams also kick off after scoring touchdowns and field goals. The ball is
kicked from a kicking tee, which is made from the team's own 30-yard line.
The other team's kick returner tries to catch the ball and advance it as far as possible. Where he is
stopped is the point where the offense will begin its drive, or series of offensive plays. If the kick
returner catches the ball in his own end zone, he can either run with the ball, or elect for a touchback
by kneeling in the end zone, in which case the receiving team then starts its offensive drive from its
own 20-yard line.
A few of the most-common penalties include:
False start: An offensive player illegally moves after lining up for the snap.
Offsides: A defensive player is on the wrong side of the ball at the start of a play.
Holding: Illegally grasping or pulling an opponent other than the ball-carrier.
Pass interference: Illegally contacting an opponent to prevent him from catching a forward pass.
Delay of game: Failing to begin a new play after a certain time from the end of the last one.
Players:

The offensive line consists of five players whose job is to protect the passer and clear the way for runners
by blocking members of the defense.
The quarterback (QB) receives the ball on most plays. He then hands or tosses it to a running back,
throws it to a receiver or runs with it himself.
Running backs line up behind or beside the QB and specialize in rushing with the ball. They also block
and catch passes.
Wide receivers line up near the sidelines. They specialize in catching passes.
Tight ends line up outside the offensive line. They can either play like wide receivers (catch passes) or like
offensive linemen (protect the QB or create spaces for runners).

Defense

The defensive line consists of three to six players who line up immediately across from the offensive line.
In most situations, at least three players line up as defensive backs (commonly known as safeties or
cornerbacks).
cornerbacks). They cover the receivers and try to stop pass completions.
The other players on the defense are known as linebackers.
linebackers. They line up between the defensive line and
defensive backs and may either rush the quarterback or cover potential receivers.

NFL Teams:
Baltimore Ravens
Houston Texans
New England Patriots
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
New York Jets
Tennessee Titan

Oakland Raiders
San Diego Chargers
Atlanta Falcons
Chicago Bears
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants

Training
Celebrating success
Famous players
Reggie White - "The Minister of Defense„
Positions: Defensive End/Defensive Tackle
Clubs: 1985-1992 Philadelphia Eagles, 1993-1998 Green Bay Packers, 2000 Carolina Panthers
Recorded more sacks (124) than games played (121) in eight seasons with Eagles, Became Packers’ all-
time sack leader with 68.5, NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1987, 1991, 1998

Harry Carson was presented with his Hall of Fame ring at halftime of the Giants-Colts game on Sept.
10th.