Drills to Develop A Game-Ready Quarterback – Drills that simulate game conditions can help get your QB ready for any situation he'll face on the field.

The quarterback position has long been described as another coach on the field. The qualities of a good quarterback must be fine-tuned from his playing ability to his leadership ability. These qualities must be identified, explained, practiced and developed to their fullest to create a successful and winning quarterback.

There must be drills developed and executed that cover every situation that will arise for a quarterback in a football game. But before we ever get to the game, practice and drills have to set the foundation for our quarterback’s success.
Drills can range from warm-up drills all the way to game-simulated drills, each one serving a different purpose in the progression of developing your quarterback. These drills must be learned, understood, practiced and become second nature for your quarterback.

Drills that warm up the quarterback while getting him ready for all practice and game situations are essential, as are the technique drills, and ultimately the decision-making drills. All must be perfected for your quarterback to truly move forward and improve in your system. It is important to make practices as game-like as possible. You always want to simulate game conditions as much as you can in every drill or practice period that you do.

There are many elements that go into becoming a good quarterback. We break the drills down into 4 categories.
 
Ball Handling

Players that handle the ball during the game have to practice doing just that, and who handles the ball more than the quarterback? We call the drills that we use Dynamic Ball Handling Drills. These drills are similar to drills that a basketball player would use to work on his ball handling skills. We break these into 5 separate drills.

•  By passing the football from one hand to the other hand, the quarterback will rotate the ball around his waist as fast as possible. He will then be instructed to reverse the motion.

•  The quarterback will also do this around both legs, one at a time, and also around his head. Once again, the quarterback will also be instructed to reverse their motion in these drills.

•  We will finish our Dynamic Ball Handling Drills with a figure 8 motion with the quarterback passing the ball through his legs in a motion, until instructed to reverse the motion.

Footwork/Running Ability

Foot speed, agility and quickness are all very important skills for a dual threat, well-rounded quarterback to develop.

Diagram 1:  Four-Way Drill - The QB focuses on footwork until instructed by his coach which one of 3 targets to throw to.

The Four-Way Drill works on the quarterback’s movement in all four directions: backward, forward, and laterally to both sides (Diagram 1). The coach will instruct the quarterback which direction to move, giving him three or four direction changes before instructing him which of the three target wide receivers to throw to. The quarterback will start the drill by taking a five-step drop then move laterally or shuffle forward or back two-three steps according to the coach’s change of direction instruction. Short, compact and under control steps will be taken by the quarterback at all times. The quarterback will have the ball at his chest at the proper throwing form during the entire drill, ready to throw and waiting until the coach signals which of the 3 wide receivers to throw to. This drill is great to simulate movement in the pocket before releasing the ball.
 
Proper Form/Throwing Ability

Technique, form, arm strength and accuracy are all important parts of a successful quarterback. The drills in this session will work on proper throwing form because the quarterback’s legs are not being used and he has to concentrate on upper body technique (Diagram 2). Each drill will have a quarterback and his partner 10 yards apart.

Diagram 2: Proper Form Drill - In this drill, the QB’s always maintain 10 yards distance between each other.

There are four components to this drill. The first has the quarterback kneeling down on his right knee, followed by his left knee, then both knees and finishing with both of his toes on the yard line. The object of this drill is to focus on the quarterback using proper form. His elbow should always be up and he should be concentrating on a good follow through. Again, proper form can be highlighted in this drill due to the fact that the quarterback is only concentrating on his upper body technique.
 
Decision Making/Thinking on the Go

Diagram 3: Zone Read Drill - In this drill the QB practices decision making by reading the DE’s movement.

This drill is vital to develop a good quarterback and team leader. It is a Zone Read Drill (Diagram 3).  After the ball is snapped to the quarterback, he will ride the running back with the football while the running back passes in front of the quarterback. The running back may or may not be handed the football. The quarterback will read the defensive end’s movement, either handing the ball off to the running back or keeping the football accordingly. This is a great decision-making drill.

Leadership ability is the final product of these game simulated drills and will ultimately lead to personal and team success. It is important to note that all of these aspects must be discussed with your quarterback prior to ever taking the field. Don’t expect a player to go onto the field and automatically know what is expected of him unless he is coached and guided in that direction.

It takes a considerable amount of time and effort to get to the point of being an outstanding quarterback and team leader, and these drills are a great starting point toward those goals. 
 
About the Author: Rich Piccinini is the head football coach at Peters Township High School in McMurray, Pennsylvania. He has 24 years of high school coaching experience and has the record at Peters Township for the most consecutive playoff appearances. Piccinini is also tied for the most overall playoff appearances as a head coach at PTHS.