How to Become A Complete Defensive Lineman In Football

This article will give you tips and advice on how to become a much better defensive lineman and dominate the game of football at this position.

Instructions

1

To be a great defensive lineman, you have to have great technique and be able to cause havoc for the offense. For defensive ends you have to be able to bull rush the offensive lineman straight into the quarterback yet put a spin move on the offensive lineman in order to get to the quarterback faster coming off the edge. If you are a defensive tackle, you need to be able to plug the gaps up and stuff the run so the running back can't get through the holes. You also have to be able to fight off blocks and get to the quarterback to sack him.

2

You must possess a strong lower body and powerful core. This will allow you to explode off the line of scrimmage once the play starts. It will allow you to drive with your legs and play on the offenses side of ball which is what your main responsibility is. If you are playing on the offenses side of the ball, then chances are they aren't getting many yards and you are doing your job.

3

To be a successful defensive lineman, you have to be able to use your hands violently to get the offensive linemen off of you. The trenches is a brutal battle between linemen, with almost all the lineman being extremely large and weighing in excess of 300 pounds. Therefore, you have to be physical and be able to punch with your hands. The best exercises to perform are the bench press, military press, and shrugs. You can search for visual descriptions of how to perform these exercises on www.stack.com or by clicking the link below on the resources tab.

4

If you are going to be a defensive lineman, you have to be tough and be able to play through pain. Notice how I said pain and not injured. If you are injured you have to come out, but if you are in pain, you have to be physically tough and play through it. Your coach is counting on you to be tough. You need to perform heavy weight training and do a lot of running and sports specific training in order to minimize the chances of you getting hurt and improving your toughness and conditioning levels.

5

Lastly, it's important to have a high energy motor. This means you need to go all out, full speed on each and every play that you are in on. You want to stay in the whole game but if you are tired and unable to give your best for a play, then come out and get a break. However, you should try to go the whole game, so this means you need to be in shape.