I’m sure folks are wondering and yes, I do have a copy of Bill Walsh’s playbook from the 80’s and what I’m presenting comes directly from that playbook. With the play clock it seems astonishing that teams can get personnel in and out of the game so quickly…
When different personnel groups enter the game, it is vital that everyone know what group should be on the field. When teams change personnel, everyone going onto the field calls out the group, and uses the associated hand signal.
If the “E” personnel should be on the field, the 'E' man would holler out 'E-personnel, E personnel,' and signal by holding out three fingers sideways (like an 'E') on each hand.
These formations are basic, and while used in play calling, the initial purpose is to get the right personnel group on the field. Each of the base formations is further broken down, for example:
For our understanding, I will just illustrate how the BASE package works. In its simplest form it is called RED.
The illustration above shows the BASE RED formation, but if this was changed to an A-C STRONG formation, we would have to understand what “A-C” means. A-C is referring to the back alignments. From behind, “A” is left, “B” is in the middle and “C” is on the right.
In the base formation there is no “B” so when the formation is A-C STRONG it means the Fullback (C) is lined up on the same side as the TE, making it A-C STRONG. It will always be prefixed by defining the side of the field, RED RIGHT A-C STRONG.
‘F’ SHORT detonates bringing a the “Z” in motion to crack back on the OLB.
‘F’ SHORT detonates bringing a the “Z” in motion to crack back on the OLB.
‘Y’ MOTION would look like this.
Here’s what the entire BASE formation package would look like…
Okay class, that’s enough for today… Take your time and try to digest all of this. I know it all seems complicated and remember, I only showed the base package, there are 6 more! The next time you hear someone call a football player stupid, you'll know better!
This is why I love the game. The intricacies set it apart from any other sport. Looking at what we see here gives fans an indication how good the coaches have to be to get these players to understand the complications of the game.
Next installment we’re going to start running some plays!
