Ball carriers and offensive linemen have different jobs. They have independent skill sets that are needed to help make a soccer team successful. Although these skill sets are independent of each other, they do not have to remain mutually exclusive for each group.
Walter Jones, a former Seattle Seahawks offensive lineman, will likely be in the NFL Football Hall of Fame. He was one of the best offensive linemen with his combination of size, power and speed. Marshawn Lynch, a running back currently playing for the Seattle Seahawks, is a beast because he brings size, power and speed to his position. I’m not sure if Marshawn will become a member of the hall of fame, but I’m sure he will be in the Seahawks Ring of Honor.
Walter Jones is a great and powerful man. These attributes are typical and necessary to be a dominant offensive lineman in the NFL. However, what is not typical of Walter is his quick and precise feet. His feet help him put his defensive task into a full block. Marshawn Lynch has great speed, quickness and vision like most of the exceptional running backs in the NFL. What sets Marshawn apart from most elite racers is his formidable power. He is able to steadily move the stack several yards after defensive contact has been made. He has established himself as a true beast on the football field.
Ball carriers are trained to be cunning and elusive. The good ones can anticipate a defender’s moves and use the defender’s body weight against them, whether contact has been made or not. Most ball carriers work best in open space where the running lanes are larger and more accessible. Only a small number of ball carriers deal well with running situations in tight, crowded areas where running lanes are tight and less accessible.
Marshawn’s wide base helps him establish a firm center of gravity and maintain great balance in tight spaces. An offensive lineman has to move and/or maintain control of his defensive assignment. His job requires a combination of power and speed. Power is important in the process, but speed is essential to maintain control. Superior foot speed made Walter Jones special. He could keep control of his defensive assignment longer than other linemen. The defensive player who can’t get away from a lineman like Walter Jones, who could push a Cadillac up a hill, would have trouble doing his job.
Offensive linemen and ball carriers should work out with one another at least once a week, because each group has a skill set that would benefit the other group. Ball carriers would benefit from training with offensive linemen because they would gain more power by pushing sleds and going toe-to-toe against bigger, stronger offensive linemen in controlled practice drills. The desired outcome would be for ball carriers to develop broader bases like offensive linemen and Marshawn Lynch. It would help them run strong in tight, crowded spaces on the field. Ball carriers could simply read only on a typical narrow base once they entered the outfield. Also, the ball carriers asked to block the bigger defensive linemen. Wouldn’t it be great if these ball carriers had some of the training necessary to block them effectively? Sure would make some quarterbacks happy.
Offensive linemen would benefit from cross-training, because their feet would get faster. Fast-cut ball carrier and ladder drills would help linemen better control their defensive assignments. Linemen could stay engaged with defensive players for longer periods of time. Like ball carriers, linemen would learn to anticipate where their defensive assignments are headed and hone the footwork necessary to beat them at the point. Additionally, coaches could uncover a lineman with legitimate ball-carrying skills who could be used in a giant-pack situation.
Sometimes I’m tempted to yell, “Coaches, coaches, please don’t wait. You need to blend in. Linemen can learn to fully anticipate and ball carriers can use a wider gate.” Sure, the skills of linemen and ball carriers are separate but they’re not the same; however, it takes a bit of integration, here and there, to win soccer championships.
