Taking your eyes off the field for even a second to check the left side rush could throw off your timing. Rushers need to trust that a hole will appear where the play has been called and a fullback needs to trust the line can handle their usual men so he's free to concentrate on picking up a blitzer on a pass play. Pass plays usually work or fail because of the job done by the left tackle.
That's a lot to put on one's shoulders and that's why not every linemen is cut out to be a left tackle. Enjoy our content?
Join our newsletter to get the latest in sports news delivered straight to your inbox! Your sports. This allows the player to fight off powerful defenders trying to shake off the blocker and take down the quarterback.
Left tackles also possess exceptional foot speed in order to keep up with defenders rushing off the edge of the line, as edge rushers are often extremely quick and powerful. Because left tackles are so crucial in ensuring the safety of the offense's quarterback, they often make higher salaries than other positions within the offensive line. Each of the top left tackles in the NFL make north of 14 million dollars per year compared to just one player at each of the other four offensive line positions left guard , center , right guard, tackle.
This can be one of the toughest things to teach a young player who is learning the game. That's because they might fear that if they are aggressive and try to attack, they could easily miss a block, which would result in a big negative play. After all, they're working in what's known as "the trenches" up front at the line of scrimmage. The only way for them to be able to absorb this is if they are tough. But, being mentally tough is so key to being a successful offensive tackle, because it's what will allow these players to keep exerting the effort and taking the contact that is necessary play after play.
Offensive tackles need to be the leaders among the offensive line, leading by example -- delivering blows and taking them over and over again. They need to be able to understand down-and-distances, and tendencies that defenses have in those situations. From the moment he lines up in his stance, an offensive tackle must scan the field quickly to identify the defensive alignment. What he's doing here is trying to identify not only his primary blocking responsibility, but what other defenders might come his way in a complicated blitz scheme.
The offensive tackle has the responsibility of calling out to other offensive linemen what he sees before the snap. Then, he must adjust on the fly after the snap -- constantly keeping his eyes peeled on the entire defense as he's blocking the man right in front of him. This isn't to say that they don't play an important role in the running game more on that next It could result in the quarterback simply being forced to scramble outside of the pocket and throwing the ball away.
But it could also result in the quarterback throwing an interception because he's pressured, or fumbling if he is hit hard from the outside. Hits that the quarterback takes from the outside can be some of the most devastating because he can't see them coming. It's the offensive tackle's job to prevent this from happening -- especially if he's protecting the quarterback's blind side. In addition to being the most important role an offensive tackle has, it's also the most difficult, as he'll be responsible for blocking very speedy and athletic defensive ends and outside linebackers.
This is a much larger challenge than a typical offensive guard faces on passing downs against defensive tackles. It's just that if he misses a block in the running game, it usually just means a loss of yardage -- and not a potential devastating injury to another offensive player.
On running plays , the offensive tackle is the player responsible for opening up holes toward the outside of the line. This, too, can be rather challenging, because he'll often be asked to block the defensive end, which is no easy task in itself. More so than that, though, he'll sometimes be asked to push the end to his left and sometimes to his right. This can be quite difficult to do, as it requires him to have a very quick first step so that he can "hook" the end one way or the other.
The phrase "outside contain" is often used when talking about defensive ends, not offensive tackles. It explains the end's primary responsibility of not allowing ball carriers to get outside of him; they must instead try to force the play back inside if they can't make the tackle themselves. The tackle must not let any defender get through the outside of the offensive line -- whether that be through the C gap to his inside or the D gap to his outside.
The only exception to his rule is if the defender decides to take such a wide path outside that he takes himself completely out of the play. For an offensive tackle to be able to keep up with speedy defensive ends and outside linebackers, he must have excellent footwork. When he's pass blocking, a lot of what he will do will involve his feet and not his arms or hands.
He'll be shifting his feet from side to side, back and forth, to shield the defender away from the quarterback. Just as in the previous drills, we will teach the position that the offensive lineman must try to avoid first.
In the first phase of the drill, we will have the offensive lineman flare his elbows with thumbs neutral or down. The scout will then hug the lineman underneath his elbows. The offensive lineman will then try to bench the scout off of him. See Picture 8. Next, the offensive lineman will tuck both his elbows and supinate his forearms in a fit onto the scout. The scout will then hug around the outside of the lineman trying to restrict him from benching him off of him.
See Picture 9. The offensive lineman should instantly feel like he is playing from a position of power in terms of hand leverage, as well as feel the incorporation of large muscle groups. Whether it be an inside leg of the play-side guard landmark on inside zone, or a seven yard launch point behind center on drop back protection, every offensive football play has a point of attack. If an offensive lineman has pre-snap leverage to the point of attack, he must maintain and sustain that position of power.
In Diagram 1, you will notice that the play-side tackle has a pre-snap leverage alignment on the defender to the point of attack on a tight zone play. By understanding that the ball is going inside of him, he knows which areas can hurt him, so he can favor against it.
For example, if the play-side tackle were to take an outside aiming point landmark and the defender that he is responsible for gap slanted inside, he ultimately would have given up his pre-snap leverage alignment. If the tackle took a tight angle of departure t0 the defender and he the defender slanted inside, he would be in a position to maintain his leverage.
In Diagram 2, you will notice that the backside tackle is at a pre-snap leverage disadvantage on the interior defensive lineman to the point of attack on the same zone play. The tackle can do these three things: 1 use an angle of departure that allows him to reach the defensive lineman, 2 call the backside guard, who has hole leverage on the defensive lineman, into a double team, or 3 strain and drive the defender down the line of scrimmage so that the ball ultimately cuts back behind the tackle, putting him between the defender and the ball carrier.
Diagram 2 The offensive line position is one of acquired skills and tools. When developing offensive linemen, it is critical that they understand the leverage they need to be in to be successful on a given play.
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