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Articles & Books From John Czarnecki
Article / Updated 08-20-2019
Good offensive football coaches try to get into the head and minds of the defense. When calling a specific play, offensive coaches want to not only beat you, but also make you look a little foolish. Football coaches work hard to develop new offensive plays to accomplish those goals. Some new offensive football plays include the fly sweep, run-pass option and bubble screen.
Article / Updated 08-20-2019
Football helmets and masks play a very important role in player safety. The football helmet and face mask are designed to protect a player’s face and head from serious injury. Many players also wear a mouth guard to protect their teeth and prevent themselves from biting their tongues. A few players even wear another protective cap on the outside of the football helmet for added protection.
Learn how to tell a first down from a touchdown and get up to speed on the latest trends in the sport Football For Dummies is a comprehensive fan’s guide to football and its many components. This updated edition includes coverage of new players, rules, and strategies. With deep explanations of every position, analysis of offense and defense, and detailed strategies for play, football legend Howie Long and established football analyst John Czarnecki present the basics of football for fans of all ages and experiences.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 05-15-2023
American football is about trying to make points by passing, carrying, or kicking an oblong ball (with two pointed ends) into your opponent's end zone. Football is a rough-and-tumble game with its own jargon, including some terms that are just plain odd. For example, a strong safety is a defender, and a regular safety is a play that scores two points — go figure.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Football as an organized sport has come a long way since the early years. Teams at every level play during a standard season and are governed by various football leagues, such as the NFL and NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association).
The heart of the football season is during the fall months. However, training camps, practices, and preseason games often begin in the summer, and playoffs and bowl games are staged after Christmas and into February.
Article / Updated 01-11-2023
After the regular football season, the National Football League (NFL) schedule moves into the playoffs, which decide who advances to the Super Bowl. In regular-season games, teams compete for the best win-loss records, and those teams with the best records advance to the playoffs.The NFL schedules all those regular-season games — 256 in a typical season — to separate the good teams from the bad.
Article / Updated 04-24-2017
Making sense of the penalties in American football can be tough — unless you have a handy list of common football penalties to refer to as you watch a game. Here are some brief explanations most common football penalties in National Football League (NFL):
List of Football Penalties
Penalty
Description
Penalty Yardage (NFL)
Encroachment
When a defensive player crosses the line of scrimmage and makes contact with an opponent before the ball is snapped.
Article / Updated 11-15-2019
To understand and enjoy American football, get familiar with key terms and what they mean. Until you grasp basic football lingo, listening to announcers call an NFL football game can be like listening to monkey gibberish. The following list fills you in on the basic American football terms you need to know:
Backfield: The group of offensive players — the running backs and quarterback — who line up behind the line of scrimmage.
Article / Updated 10-09-2019
When two opposing American football teams meet on the gridiron (playing field), the player positions depend on whether the football team is playing offense or defense. Football pits the offense, the team with the ball, against the defense, which tries to prevent the offense from scoring. Each side lines up facing the other with the football in the middle.
Article / Updated 07-21-2022
Today, the National Football League (NFL) is divided into two conferences: the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). Each conference consists of 16 teams and is divided into four divisions — East, West, North, and South — of four teams each.
These division titles don’t necessarily correspond to geographic parts of the country, though.