FOOTBALL SLANG summary
Jerry Dunn
Hi,
Thanks to everyone who sent football slang for my book, "Idiom Savant:
Slang As It Is Slung" (Henry Holt & Co., NY, spring 1997). Here's the
summary I said I'd post.
No doubt I've made some boneheaded errors, especially in usage. Please
send any corrections or additions to me by e-mail:
I hope you can add example sentences to some definitions, to show how the
terms are properly used.
It's nice of you to help. Thanks again very much!
Cheers,
Jerry Dunn
The summary:
barnburner n. a wildly entertaining game in which both sides score
freely, the lead changes hands again and again, and the outcome is in
doubt until the final gun.
blitz n. a play in which the linebackers join the defensive lineman in
trying to smash the offensive line and tackle the quarterback before he
can pass. łThe only disadvantage of a blitz is when it turns out not to
be a pass play, and your players are out of position to defend against a
running play.˛ Players warn each other of an impending blitz by shouting
łRed dog! Red dog!˛
bomb n. a touchdown pass thrown 40 yards or more in the air. łWe had the
game won, except for those two bombs Marino threw at the end of the half.˛
call an audible v. for a quarterback to shout the code name for a new
play at the line of scrimmage, after seeing that the defense has
anticipated the previously planned play.
chain gang n. the officials who move the ten-yard chain and poles that
indicate the point where the offensive team must reach to gain their next
first down.
chip shot n. a field goal attempt from a very easy distance, usually
under 20 yards. łAnd the Forty Niners go for the chip shot.˛
clothesline n. a tackle by the neck, in which the runner was unaware of,
or unable to evade, the arm of the defender. Similar to running through a
yard at night and colliding with a clothesline.
the flats n. the part of the field lateral to the line of scrimmage,
where short passes are often thrown.
flea flicker n. a variation of the reverse, in which the second running
back stops and throws a pass downfield, against a defense that has now
committed to defending against a run.
free play n. a play in which the quarterback knows that a penalty has
already been called against the defensive squad, so if he makes a risky
play and anything bad happens, it will all be nullified by the defensive
penalty; but if the risky play succeeds, he can decline the penalty and
take the result of the risky play.
front four n. the offensive linemen who protect the quarterback on
passing plays or bulldoze open lanes for halfbacks and fullbacks on
running plays. Top units earn nicknames like the Fearsome Foursome, the
Purple Gang, and the Killer Bąs.
Hail Mary n. a desperation pass play by the trailing team, as the final
play of the game. Both defense and offense put as many players as
possible in the end zone, and the quarterback throws the ball without any
real hope of hitting any particular receiver. łAbout every fiftieth time
a team pulls a Hail Mary, God reaches down and puts the ball into the
hands of the trailing team for a winning touchdown.˛
hang time n. the length of time that a punt stays in the air. łA short
punt with good hang time leaves no chance for a runback by the other
team.˛
hankie n. the yellow flag thrown by officials to indicate a penalty. The
term is used only when officials are imposing many borderline or rarely
called penalties. łThe refs are getting hankie happy. But in playoffs
they tend to keep their hankies in their pockets and let the players
settle the game.˛
headhunter n. a defensive player with a reputation for intentionally
injuring ball carriers who are unaware they are about to be hit.
juke v. for the ball carrier to make a deceptive move that fakes a
defender into missing a seemingly easy tackle. łHe juked him out of his
jock strap on that one.˛
kneel-down n. the boring plays at the end of a game when the team with
the lead has the ball and the trailing team has no time-outs left. The
offensive players form a defensive shield around the quarterback, who
makes no attempt to advance the ball but kneels down to end the play to
let the clock wind down.
pick n. an intercepted pass. łKen Norton, Jr., had two picks in one game
last year, and none for the rest of the season.˛
playbook n. the list of a teamąs planned plays, each with a code name,
such as łOne Red Right.˛
play both ways v. to be able to handle both offensive and defensive jobs.
pocket n. the protected area for the quarterback created by the offensive
line. Once the pocket breaks down (within four or five seconds in the
NFL), the quarterback is forced to scramble or be sacked. łDan Marino of
Miami is known as a quarterback who must remain in the pocket to be
effective; heąs not much of a scrambler.˛
red zone n. the area between the goal line and the 20-yard-line. łThe
Rams have been abysmal in the red zone this year, scoring only twice out
of 16 times theyąve had the ball inside the enemyąs 20-yard-line.˛
reverse n. a running play in which the quarterback hands off to a running
back, who runs parallel to the line of scrimmage for a few yards, only to
hand off to another running back coming the other way; this runner then
heads upfield.
ring his bell v. to hit the other player hard.
sack v. to knock down the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage before
he can pass or hand off the ball. Also, n.
scatback n. a small, lightweight running back whose chief assets are
speed and agility rather than steamroller size and weight.
scramble n. a quarterbackąs evasive maneuvers after the defenders break
through his protective wall of linemen. łWhen it comes to good
scramblers, itąs hard to beat John Elway of Denver.˛
shotgun n. an offensive play in which the quarterback lines up three or
four yards behind the center, instead of taking the ball directly from the
centerąs hands. This gives the quarterback a few extra seconds to
surveythe defensive array before the defensive lineman can reach him.
shovel n. an underhand forward pass.
spearing n. the illegal practice of impaling a runner with the head-first
impact of your helmet.
stunt n. a shifting or switching of positions by defensive players at the
line of scrimmage to disrupt the opponentąs blocking efforts; often a
presage to a blitz.
two-minute drill n. a special set of plays used late in the half, when
time is at a premium. Passes are thrown to the sidelines so that ball
carriers can step out of bounds easily to stop the clock. No-huddle plays
are set up in advance so players can race back to the line of scrimmage in
case an in-bounds tackle is made and the clock is still running.
xąs and oąs n. the chalkboard symbols used by coaches to map out plays.
łA veteran, well-coached team has more xąs and oąs to fall back on.˛
zebra n. any of the officials on the field (referee, line judge, umpire,
etc.). So called because of their striped jerseys.
--
Jerry Dunn
jd...@west.net
Clayton Neff
Jerry -
A few corrections:
>flea flicker n. a variation of the reverse, in which the second running
>back stops and throws a pass downfield, against a defense that has now
>committed to defending against a run.
A flea flicker is when the running back stops before they cross the line
scrimage and tosses the ball back to the quarterback, who then throws it
down field. I don't know of a special term for the play where the running
back stops and throws the ball.
>front four n. the offensive linemen who protect the quarterback on
>passing plays or bulldoze open lanes for halfbacks and fullbacks on
>running plays. Top units earn nicknames like the Fearsome Foursome, the
>Purple Gang, and the Killer B零.
The front four is on the defense, not the offense. The front line of the
offense consists of 5 players (2 tackles, 2 guards, and the center). The
defense has 4 (2 tackles and 2 ends).
>shovel n. an underhand forward pass.
Underhanded forward passes are illeagal (atually called forward laterals,
which doesn't make much semantic sense, but there it is). While the
motion often is underhanded, it isn't supposed to be. The motion is
supposed to be more of a push of the ball from the stomach or chest of the
quarterback.
Clayton Neff Software Design Engineer
cn...@primnet.com SAVID International, Inc.
Shawnee, Kansas, USA Ramsey, New Jersey, USA
Telecommuting my way into the 21st century!
Vijay Ramanujan
In article <32514261...@news.primenet.com> Clayton Neff,
cn...@primenet.com writes:
>A flea flicker is when the running back stops before they cross the line
>scrimage and tosses the ball back to the quarterback, who then throws it
>back stops and throws the ball.
Usually called a half-back pass. I think they use the same term if it
comes off a reverse.
Pet peeve: The use of the term reverse for the end around. It's very,
very different. The end-around doesn't have the misdirection effect
unless it's happening in the offensive line.
dtk
In article <32514261...@news.primenet.com>, cn...@primenet.com
(Clayton Neff) wrote:
> Jerry -
> >shovel n. an underhand forward pass.
> Underhanded forward passes are illeagal
no they're not, if they come from behind the line of scrimmage;
a QB (or anyone for that matter) could throw the ball forward through his
legs or from any position and it would be a legal pass if behind
the line