Tackle football game drills can help kids improve their tackling technique and form on the field. Whereas professional tackling drills use heavy sleds and weights to improve players' tackling abilities, most youth leagues focus on pad tackling drills as well as tackling dummy drills to help teach kids fundamental skills.
Form Tackling Drills
Form tackling drills are the building blocks of any tackler's defensive skill set. Although these drills can be performed with multiple tacklers moving simultaneously with running backs and linemen, the drill is a one-on-one drill in its simplest form. Break your team up into two lines, each line facing the other. Choose one line to be defense and one line to be offense. On your whistle, have the tackler take down the running back with a basic form tackle. Because this is practice, instruct the defender to drive through the running back without tackling him to the ground. Repeat with all of the defenders on your team.
The Gauntlet
This tackling drill is designed to improve your defenders' tackling abilities as well as your running backs' ability to break tackles. Place a pair of cones four yards apart from each other. Place another pair four yards behind the first pair. Place a third pair four yards behind that. Have a defender stand in between each set of cones. A running back stands 10 feet away with a ball in hand. On your whistle, he runs toward the first defender. The defender attempts to tackle him. If he tackles him, have the runner get up and run at the second defender. The runner cannot move outside of the cones during the drill. Have him continue to run until he has gotten by all defenders.
Angle Tackling Drills
Angle tackling drills are designed to improve your defenders' ability to tackle offensive players from various angles on the field. Break your defenders into pairs. Have them face each other, five yards apart. Choose one player to be the defender and the other to be the running back. Stand directly behind the defender, signaling to the running back which direction he should run. On your whistle, have the runner run in this direction. As soon as the defender sees the direction he is running, he should attempt to tackle him at this angle.
Hug and Hold Drill
This basic tackling drill is designed to teach tacklers how to properly wrap up an offensive player. Have one defender stand in front of a running back. On your whistle have the running back jump up and out toward the defender. Have the defender perform a bear hug on the offensive player, using both hands to hold the player up in the air. Have him hold the offensive player in this position for several seconds before bringing him to the ground. Have him repeat until fatigued.
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