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O-Back: Integration, Soccer Style

Ball carriers and offensive linemen have different jobs. They have independent skill sets that are needed to help a soccer team be successful. Although these skill sets are independent of each other, they do not have to be mutually exclusive for each group.

Walter Jones, a former offensive lineman for the Seattle Seahawks, will likely be in the NFL’s 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 with the Seattle Seahawks now, is a beast because he brings size, power and speed to his position. I’m not sure if Marshawn will become a Hall of Famer, but I’m sure he will be in the Seahawks Ring of Honor.

Walter Jones is a great 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 fast and precise feet. His feet help him put his defensive task into full lockdown. Marshawn Lynch has great speed, quickness and vision like most exceptional running backs in the NFL. What sets Marshawn apart from most other elite runners is his formidable power. He is able to consistently move the pile several yards after defensive contact has been made. He has established himself as a veritable beast on the soccer field.

Ball carriers are trained to be stealthy and elusive. The good guys can anticipate a defender’s movements and use the defender’s body weight against him, whether he has been contacted or not. Most ball carriers do best in an open space where the running lanes are larger and more accessible. Only a small number of ball carriers cope well with racing situations in very crowded areas where race tracks are narrow and less accessible.

Marshawn’s wide base helps you establish a firm center of gravity and maintain great balance in tight spots. An offensive lineman has to move and / or maintain control of his defensive assignment. Your job requires a combination of power and speed. Power is important in the process, but speed is essential to maintain control. The superior foot speed made Walter Jones special. He could maintain control of his defensive assignment for a longer period of time than other linemen. The defensive player who can’t separate himself from a lineman like Walter Jones, who could push a Cadillac uphill, would have trouble doing his job well.

Offensive linemen and ball carriers should train 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 head-to-head against bigger and stronger offensive linemen in controlled practice drills. The desired outcome would be for ball carriers to develop wider bases like offensive linemen and Marshawn Lynch. It would help them run powerfully in tight, crowded spaces on the field. Ball carriers could simply readjust to a typical narrow base once they entered the outfield. In addition, the ball carriers asked to block the larger defensive linemen. Wouldn’t it be great if these ball carriers had some of the training necessary to effectively block them? It sure would make some quarterbacks happier.

Offensive linemen would benefit from cross training, because their feet would become faster. Ladder ball carrier and quick cut drills would help linemen better control their defensive assignments. Linemen could remain engaged with defensive players for longer periods of time. Like ball carriers, linemen would learn to anticipate where their defensive assignments are going and hone the footwork needed to beat them to the point. Additionally, coaches can uncover linemen with legitimate ball-carrying skills that could be used in a jumbo pack situation.

Sometimes I’m tempted to yell, “Coaches, coaches, please don’t wait. They need to integrate. 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 are not the same; however, it takes a bit of integration, here and there, to win soccer championships.