Football Vocabulary
- AFC (American Football Conference) – one of two conferences in the NFL
- Blitz – assigning a player to quickly/forcefully enter the backfield
- bye week – a week where a team is not scheduled to play a team
- centers – A position on the offensive team. The center snaps the ball to the quarterback.
- coin toss – this is performed at the beginning of the game to determine which team plays offense and defense first
- conference – the National Football league has two conferences, AFC and NFC
- cornerbacks – A position on the defensive team. The cornerback is responsible for guarding the wide receiver
- defense – The team that does not have possession of the ball. Their job is to keep the offensive team from scoring.
- defensive backs – a player from the defensive team who stand behind the defensive line and consist of the cornerbacks and safeties
- defensive ends – players from the defensive team who are positioned on the defensive line and stand at the ends of the line of scrimmage
- defensive linemen – players from the defensive team who stand on the line of scrimmage for the defense and consist of the defensive ends and defensive tackles
- defensive tackles – players from the defensive team who are positioned on the defensive line and stand between the defensive ends
- downs – A play that starts when the ball is snapped and then stopped when the referee blows his whistle. A play is stopped when the team scores, the ball is fumbled, or intercepted. To complete a down the team most advance 10 yards.
- draft – when college graduates are picked to play on a professional football team
- division – The further separation of a conference. Each conference is divided into a east, west, south, and north division.
- end zone – the rectangular area at each end of the field where players from the opposing team can scored
- fair catch – when a player catches the ball after a kickoff or punt and signals that they want to catch the ball without interference from any member from the kicking team
- field goals – a point scored when the kicker punts the ball in between the goal post
- first down – when the team completes 10 yards from the line of scrimmage
- fumble – when the ball is thrown and is not fully caught by the offensive team
- half time – the time in between the first and second quarter and the third and fourth quarter
- holder – a player from special teams who is responsible for keeping the ball upright while the kicker punts the ball
- kicker – a player from special teams who is responsible for punting the ball
- kickoff – when the ball is punted at the beginning of a half, or when the ball changes hands
- interception – when the ball is thrown but caught by the defensive team instead of the offense
- interior offensive lineman – tackles, guards, and center from the offensive team who stand on the line of scrimmage
- linebackers – players from the defensive teams who stand behind the defensive line and tackle any players that get beyond the defensive line
- line of scrimmage – Each play is started from this line. The line is usually determined by where the ball stops on the previous play.
- long snapper – a player from special teams who is center that is able to snap the ball for punts and field goals
- NFC (National Football Conference) – one of two conferences in the NFL.
- offense – The team that has possession of the ball. Their job is to advance the ball down the field and score.
- NFL (National Football League – the franchise in charge of professional football
- penalty – when a rule is broken by either the offensive or defensive team.
- playoffs – the portion of the football season that takes the top teams from each division to determine who will play in the Super Bowl
- preseason – the portion of the football season that the team uses to determine the skill of the rookies
- pocket – where the quarterback stands when the ball is snapped
- punt – when the ball is kicked by the kicker
- quarter – A 15 minute section of a football game. Each game has 4 quarters.
- quarterback – a player from the offensive team responsible for throwing or passing the ball to the wide receivers, tight end, or running backs
- regular season – the portion of the football season where players compete to qualify for the playoffs
- running back – a player from the offensive team responsible for getting the ball from the quarterback and running it down the field
- sack – when the quarterback is tackled while in the pocket
- safety – a player from the defensive team who stands behind the defensive line and act as the last line of defense against the offense
- Super Bowl – the portion of the football season where the AFC champion and the NFC champion compete for the national football title
- tackle – stopping progress of ball carrier
- tackle for loss – tackle behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of yards
- tight end – A player from the offensive team who stands on the line of scrimmage. He is responsible for blocking and running the ball.
- time out – each team gets a total of 6 time outs, 3 for each half
- touchdown – a point scored when a player touches down in the end zone with the football
- wide receiver – a player from the offensive team who is responsible for catching the ball
- wild card – A term used for teams who did not win their division but performed well during the regular season. Teams given a wild card are eligible for the playoffs.
- zone – assigning a player specific part of the field of play to cover
