American Football - A Quick Guide to Positions in American Football

Football is one of the great American pastimes, but can be a little complicated. There is no other sport that has as many positions or stratagem. This article's purpose is to give a brief explanation of the different positions in American football and what their responsibilities are.

Offensive Teams

Stratagem

Quarterback:
The quarterback is the offensive leader. It is his job to call the plays, and execute them. He stands behind and is protected from the opposing team by the offensive line. The Quarterback receives the ball and can either pass it by throwing, pitching, or handing off. The quarterback can also seize the opportunity to run the ball himself if the play or the situation calls for it. Due to the nature of the position, it is a leadership role that gets a lot of attention in the media.

American Football - A Quick Guide to Positions in American Football

Offensive Linemen:
The main group of players that block for the quarterback are called offensive linemen. They compose of differing responsibilities referred to as the center, offensive guard, and offensive tackle.

Center:
The center is in the center of the offensive line. He is in charge of hiking the ball back to the quarterback and protecting the quarterback along with the offensive line from the opposing team's defense.

Offensive Guard:
In a typical offense there are two offensive guards that position themselves on both ends of the center. There responsibility is to block the opposing team's defense from getting through. They also help open a running route for the running back.

Offensive Tackle:
The players that are on the outside or outer ends of the offensive line are called the offensive tackles. It is there job along with the other offensive linemen to block the opposing team from sacking (tackling) the quarterback, and open up areas for the running back to get through.

Receivers:
The receivers' main objective is to receive the ball on a passing play. They are also used as blockers on a running play. The different names for their positioning on the field are the tight end, and two wide receivers otherwise known as the flanker, and the split end. There positioning is listed below, each one has the same responsibility but are in different places on the field.

The tight end lines up at the end of the offensive line
The flanker lines up on the same side as the tight end but split from the formation
The split end lines up on the opposite side as the tight end and also is split from the formation

Full Back:
The fullback is behind the quarter back and this players job is to block for the halfback

Half Back:
The halfback also is behind the quarter back an performs most of the running plays. This player can also catch short passes when necessary.

Defensive Teams

Defensive Ends:
The defensive ends are positioned on the ends on the center group of the defending teams line of scrimmage. Their responsibility is to break through the offensive line in order to tackle the quarter back when he is planning to pass, or tackle the running back if it is passed to him.

Defensive Tackles:
The defensive tackles perform the same duties as the defensive ends. They are located on the inside of the usual four man line up for the defense.

Line Backers:
The line backers responsibility is just like their name "back the line". They are responsible for any running back that gets pas the defensive ends or tackles. They also cover short passes made over that defensive line

Corner Backs:
Corner backs cover the wide receivers on long passes. There responsibility is to try to prevent the long plays, tackle passes completed and even try for an interception.

Safeties:
The last defense for a running back is a safety. Their job is to cover any longer passes that the cornerbacks are not covering and also to tackle and running backs that get through the line backers. They have more of a observational role making sure that holes are filled and that the offense doesn't make any big plays.

Special Teams

Special teams deal with punts, field goals, and receiving or kicking the ball at the start of the game, after halftime, or any touchdowns.

Returners:
Catch the kickoff and try to get as far down the field as possible

Blockers:
Block the defense for the returner and try to open up room on the field for them to get through

Holder:
Hold the ball during a field goal

Place Kicker:
Kicks the ball from a place holder in a kick off

Punter:
Drop kicks the ball in a punt play to get the defending team away from their inzone.

American Football - A Quick Guide to Positions in American Football

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American Civil War Generalship

Generalship in the American Civil War was an uneven skill. None of the Army commanders had ever led planned tactics or led large groups of troops in combat. Those who were career military men were junior officers during the Mexican War. Before that war the peacetime United States Army was small force numbering around 7,400. It swelled with volunteers who enlisted for the duration. Then it returned to its former size after the conflict was over. By comparison many Civil War divisions were the size of the entire pre-Mexican War army. At the beginning of the Civil Warthe Army consisted of 1,080 commissioned officers and 15,000 enlisted men.

The general officers that commanded during the Mexican War were long gone by the time of the Civil War with the exception of Winfield Scott who was the Commanding General of the United States. Scott was approaching 75 when the war began and held the position until November 1861 when he resigned due to ill health. In the intervening months Scott had drawn up a complicated plan that he named Anaconda because he expected that it would choke the South with a coastal blockade and the closure of the Mississippi River. It was substantially the same plan that the North used to defeat the Southern Confederacy.

Generalship

Robert E. Lee was a staff officer during the war and was promoted to brevet major during the war. By the end of the war, he had received additional brevet promotions to Lieutenant Colonel and Colonel, but his permanent rank was still Captain of Engineers and he would remain a Captain until his transfer to the cavalry in 1855. Future Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston had a similar career path as Lee.

American Civil War Generalship

The much younger Ulysses Grant was lieutenant in the Quartermaster Corps but did see action. Most of the other officers of similar age had a similar rank. George Pickett, James Longstreet, Winfield Scott Hancock were also lieutenants.

At the onset of the war many of the Federal general officers were political appointees who had virtually no military experience. This was a situation that cost the Union Army dearly. Gradually the incompetents were weeded out and the better officers rose to higher command. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, a college professor, and Francis C, Barlow, a lawyer, for the North and John B. Gordon, a lawyer, for the South were three future generals that come to mind. (Barlow was my 2nd great grandfather's commanding officer at Antietam). Eventually, there were many more like them.

The Civil War was fought in stages and dissimilar regions of the country. Let's look at the various stages of the war. In the early stage, say from April 1861 to April 1862 the armies were no more than armed mobs. The commanders were not used to leading or maneuvering large groups of troops. First Manassas is a classic example of this. Anyone who thinks that this battle was anything but a clash of two armed mobs needs to reread accounts of the battle. On the Federal side the main goal was "On to Richmond" and most of the battles in this time period were attempts to capture the Confederate capital.

After a succession of near catastrophic defeats and close victories fought by inept generals Lincoln finally settled on Ulysses S. Grant who had won a succession of bloody battles in the Western Theater: Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, the capture of Vicksburg and battles around Chattanooga. Grant after his elevation to Commanding General selected officers who understood the the destruction of the Confederate armies and their supply lines were the two paramount goals of the Federal armies.

Of course, there were several deviations in this strategy: the Vicksburg campaign because it split the Confederacy in half comes to mind. Antietam was a meeting engagement that was precipitated by Lee's invasion of the North, as was Gettysburg.

Many of the Federal generals rehabilitated their reputations in subordinate commands and by being transferred to different theaters. Joseph Hooker who was relieved of the command of the Army of the Potomac in late-June 1863 was instrumental in the Federal victories around Chattanooga in the fall of 1863.

Comparing early generalship to later generalship is like comparing apples to oranges. McClellan was the right officer for the Union up until Antietam. At Antietam he was afraid to risk the army that he had created against Lee's much smaller force. If Grant, Sherman or Sheridan had commanded the Federal army the war probably would have ended right there with Lee's army defeated in detail.

The consistency of the Confederate leadership in the East enabled them to hold out far longer than they should have. Lee was both an offensive genius and a more than competent defensive commander. His subordinate commanders were mostly graduates of West Point. Men like Thomas J. (Stonewall) Jackson, Pickett, Lewis Armistead, Longstreet, Jubal Early and A.P. Hill were all West Pointers. Lee who had been the Superintendent from 1852 until 1885 was personally familiar with many of his future division and brigade commanders from his tour on the Hudson. His oldest son, a future general, Custis Lee graduated first in his class in 1854. It was the combination of superior generalship and dedicated soldiers that kept the Southern Confederacy in the war for so long.

From then to now West Point trains its officers to 'pursue the enemy with the utmost audacity' in the words of George S. Patton. At the battle of the Bulge Gen. Lawton J. Collins (Lightning Joe) was said to have told the British General Montgomery that the American Army organizes at the line of attack. And they did sweeping the enemy before them.

Up until modern times the United States military has always been a conscript army. In 1973 the United States instituted an all-volunteer force for all branches of the military. Previous to that we have had to create conscript armies by the use of a draft. The Civil War was no different. Both sides asked for and depended on volunteers for their armies. Eventually, due to casualty rates and the expansion of the fighting both sides resorted to conscription. The battles over conscription in the North and the South is a subject for another day.

From the middle of the war on generalship and leadership on both sides was similar. Their were competent officers and incompetent officers on each side. Eventually, the North, the side with the most men, material and industry won.

American Civil War Generalship

Richard Billies
http://northagainstsouth.com
Richard is a blogger and small business owner in central Virginia.