The Beginner's Guide to American Football

So, it's getting to be mid-January and you're wondering what the big deal is about the NFL Playoffs, and that big unintentional holiday - Super Bowl Sunday? Perhaps you've been invited to a Super Bowl party and you want to be able to cheer for your team. You are actually in great luck, my friend, because this year you are about to witness history (hopefully). Let me explain....

First off, American Football is a huge past-time in the United States, and is gaining in popularity world-wide. It is a timed game, which consists of four quarters (or playing periods) of 15 minutes each. The object of the game is to get an oblong shaped ball into the opposing team's endzone. There are 11 players on each side of the ball:

On the Offense (or the team which is currently holding onto the ball and trying to move it down the field) you have:

1 Quarterback - the focal point of the offense. He gets the ball first and decides whether to hand it off or pass it.

5 Offensive Linemen - these players set up a blocking wall for the Quarterback by not letting the defensive players get to him. They also run downfield and set up blocking for the running backs so that they can run behind them.

2 Running Backs - these players are lined up in the backfield with the Quarterback, and get the ball handed off to them. Or, they could run out and catch the ball that's thrown by the Quarterback

2 (or 3) Wide Receivers - these players line up on or close to the line. They run out and try to catch the ball being thrown to them by the Quarterback.

1 Tight End - these players line up on either side of the Offensive Line and either assist with the blocking or go out to catch passes as well. Sometimes the offensive team will decide to use 3 wide receivers, and the Tight End will be left off the field - This is a 3-Wide situation.

The defensive side consists of a set of defensive linemen, linebackers, cornerbacks, and Safeties, but their specific positions aren't as important. They have one goal - stop the offense from getting into their endzone.

The game is played on a 120 yard field, where the 10 yards on each side of the field are the endzones, and the field in between them is divided into 10 yard segments equaling 100 yards. There is also a Y-shaped structure at the end of each endzone called the "uprights". This is used for special scoring.

The ways to score are as follows:

6 points are scored when a team puts the football into the opposing team's endzone. After the touchdown is scored, the team can elect to go for 1 "extra point" or 2. If they decide to go for 1, they will kick a "point after touchdown". If they decide to go for 2, they will get the ball a small distance outside the endzone and one chance to get into the endzone. If they succeed, they will be awarded the points.

In addition, a team can get 3 points by kicking a field goal, which is basically the same thing as a point after touchdown, except if can be done anywhere outside the endzone. Teams typically elect to do this when they don't think that they can score a touchdown.

The offensive team gets four downs, or tries, to move 10 yards towards the opposing team's endzone. If they are able to get the 10 yards then they get a "new set of downs", or another four tries. If they have gotten to the 4th down and they don't think they can get the 10 yards, they will elect to punt, which is essentially kicking the ball to the other team.

So those are the basic rules that you need to know in order to enjoy the game. But the main reason why people enjoy the game so much is because they learn about the players and team histories while they watch. As of this writing, there are four teams contending for the Super Bowl 2008 - the New York Giants, the Green Bay Packers, the San Diego Chargers, and the New England Patriots. I'll give you one big storyline for this year that I'm sure you will be hearing leading up to the big game - New England's chance for perfection. They have already gone through all 16 games in the regular season without losing, and basically were stomping on their opponents. They have played two of the three remaining teams already - San Diego very early in the season (where they blew them out 38-14) and New York (the last game in the regular season, and one of the closest (3 points). This will be a chance for them to win every game they play in a season, which hasn't been done since the 1972 Miami Dolphins did it (17 total games). If New England wins their last two games, they will have done what some consider the greatest accomplishment in sports history. If they do not win the Super Bowl, then most of the players on that team, along with a majority of sports broadcasters and fans, will consider the team a failure. No pressure, right?!?!?!

Hopefully this has given you an introduction to American Football, especially the National Football League. If you would like to hear more of the storylines that will get you ready for the big game, you can always check Fox Sports online, ESPN, or any other source of sporting news.