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AFM Magazine


Speed Report - Movement Skills – Critical for Drill Effectiveness

by: Dale Baskett
Football Speed Specialist
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Using drills for teaching and developing football movement is certainly not uncommon. However, breaking down the drills analytically is not the most common practice. Most drills are performed to provide reinforcement for certain football movements, usually relevant to a position. The movement patterns are supposed to create better agility and speed of movement with the use of cones or other equipment creating a challenge for player agility. Although there’s nothing wrong with that, there’s a problem with any drill that’s not effectively providing the best mechanical efficiency and movement control skills.

The following drills will help coaches utilize more effective mechanical body control methods which will allow players to perform faster during movement transitions.

Knowing What to Look For

Most drill set-ups are designed to simulate a football movement, generally by position. What’s actually missing are the mechanical techniques needed to provide major body control efficiency. Football doesn’t require that coaches become movement experts in order to be  good football coaches. But it would improve your program to acquire a certain degree of movement skill knowledge that can make your drill work more useful and productive.

When I was with the Seattle Seahawks a few decades ago, Chuck Knox, the head coach, wanted me to meet with his entire staff, one at a time. His intent was to educate them on the proper movement techniques so the players could move more effectively. The problem with most drill work is that the football movement is what everyone is concerned with. We can’t focus on that alone at the expense of mechanical functions. Coach Knox recognized this while viewing the before and after videos of my training with his players.

The Best Way to Maximize Movement Skills

Mechanical application for movement control is always the most critical aspect when watching your athletes move through your drills. The following drills will help you learn what you should look for as you teach them. Transitional phases of variable movements and the key mechanical functions are important for you to view as you watch the athletes perform. Don’t just watch your athletes, but be looking to correct mistakes as they surface.

Hurrying players through drills and not being concerned with how they perform will be less productive. Quantity isn’t the key when you teach motor movement skills. What’s most important is that they are performed correctly. That’s the beauty of running – it provides numerous cycles which, when correctly controlled, change motor imprints rapidly if correct techniques are applied. When they’re right, each cycle will have good motor imprints again and again. That’s why we don’t need many reps because cyclic compounding done right is your friend if the techniques are applied accurately for each cycle taken.

Remember, it’s quality, not numbers for numbers sake that provides effective control that will deliver velocity for each step. Less done right will always provide greater gain vs. more poor techniques. The trick is to know what you’re looking at and why it’s right or wrong.

Drill Series

The following drills are football movement skills. The drills are arranged from 1 to 6 for movement skill challenges. I will explain the movement factors involved for executing them correctly as we move through each drill and each transition. No amount of intensity and desire can make an athlete faster when it’s really technical control that is paramount for achieving maximum results.


Diagram # 1

This drill begins with a back pedal. The player is bent forward slightly with his hips up and a slight knee bend. The key point is to keep the chest over the mid-thigh continuously. Elbows should be in and the shoulder is the focus, active at all time. Do not focus on the hands. Lock elbows and rotate shoulder joint. Keep arm rotation short from front to back. When planting to re-direct to new angles, keep shoulder joint active and non-stop. The action is going to be responsive if you follow this technique. Stay over thigh with chest and eyes level when planting to re-direct. The key now is having the center of body weight over foot strike on all movement activity. Perform the same 90-degree release action and stay over the down cycle of foot placement on the plant to the new angle.

Diagram # 2

Begin with a back pedal again and apply the same techniques as indicated in drill #1. Then plant to 45-degree angle release. When doing this, keep the center of mass over the down cycle again. Shoulder activity doesn’t stop during this phase of transition. When you plant, activate the arm action front to back rapidly. Keep eyes level and ahead. Now plant again to a burst with arm cycle to the 45-degree angle. Always be over the top of your down cycle action.


Diagram # 3

Burst at 90 percent while staying over your foot strike on the plants to lateral. Secondly, keep arms active on all the plants while keeping the rhythm the same on the laterals and straight sprints. The key is to keep the rhythm for the entire course. You can’t sprint full out and control the changes required. Rhythmical limb pace should be at 90 percent throughout the drill while keeping eyes level at all times. Repeat the rest of this drill with the same directives.


Diagram # 4

This drill starts with a straight hard sprint release. Then plant in front of the cone to lateral with extension of leg cycle downward while not dropping the hips. (That’s the difference between extension and drop). Arms stay active on all plants with no stutter step before the plant and every plant is taken in stride. Then switch, stay over foot strike placement when switching to the opposite lateral direction. This is followed by a quick weave. Lean left/right with shoulder as you keep arms continuously active front to back and elbows in at all times. Then there is a straight deceleration. Shorten arm rotation rapidly to decel and then finish with an active limb cycle burst.


Diagram # 5

Set your angles with the first two zones at less than 45 degrees. First stride is at 80 percent. Then, activate the arm and stay over your plant while not dropping the hips on the plant. Plant again to 45 degree angle with velocity, then shut down limb cycle immediately to a decel. Plant again and burst limb cycle to create power and frequency.


Diagram # 6

For this drill, burst straight, control transition to shuffle by staying over sprint when you plant. If you lean back on the plant, you are out of control. Then, rhythmic shuffle and plant to a burst forward. Again, you must be over the top of the down cycle on the plant leg. Lean slightly in on the curve, keep elbows in and limb rapid from front to back. Eyes stay forward on each of the 6 drills.

These drills and techniques are critical to improving your players’ speed. If you would  like further content along this line, email me directly at dbspeedt@hotmail.com.






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