As a football lineman, you will have one of two duties, depending if you are on offense or defense. An offensive lineman’s job is to prevent the defensive lineman from coming through, while a defensive lineman’s job is to get past the offensive lineman. For both roles, you need an extraordinary amount of strength and agility, mixed with the proper technique. Learning those three aspects and practicing them with drills will help improve your on-field performance.
Hip Roll Drill
Line up with other linemen in front of a one-person sled. One lineman sits on one knee and positions himself as he would on the line. When the coach blows the whistle, the player shoots up and extends his hands into the sled. His hips should roll, spinning so that he lands on the other side of the drill on his other knee. On the next whistle, he repeats the drill, but from the other side. When he finishes the drills for the second time, he rolls out of the way to allow the next lineman to perform the drill. According to Football-plays-and-drills.com, this drill allows you to develop power in your hips to explode off the line of scrimmage.
Get Off Drill
Have linemen form two single-file lines next to one another. The front two people in each line get into their stance on the line of scrimmage, while the coach stands opposite them in between the two players, holding a football. When the coach desires, he simulates snapping the ball, like a quarterback would do in a game. As soon as the coach snaps the ball, the players must sprint 5 to 10 yards away, to a target placed by the coach beforehand. The object of this is to reach the target before the other player you are racing against reaches the target. This drill, according to Footballdrills.com, teaches players agility, in addition to helping them anticipate the snap of the ball--both of which are essential in succeeding in football.
Agility Drill
Place one cone 10 yards to the left of a sled and another cone 10 yards to the right of the sled. Position linemen so they are lined up in front of each other in front of the sled. The first person in line should get into his stance about 1 yard in front of the sled. When the coach blows the whistle, the player shoots into the sled and tries to push it up as high as he can. When the coach blows the whistle again, he drops the sled and springs as fast as he can to one of the cones (the coach decides which cone to run to first). As soon as he reaches the first cone, he sprints to the second cone. The second lineman then goes. This drill, according to Football-plays-and-drills.com, teaches lineman proper technique of coming out of their stance on the line of scrimmage. It also increases their power and their agility from a set stance.
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