The X’s & O’s with Nathali Parker
The Pro’s Corner
The 101 of the D-line
Greg Townsend (Former Oakland Raider Defensive Line)
Nathali: Right here Nathali Parker and Greg Townsend the great former Raider
Defensive Lineman and he is giving me the 101 of the D line
Greg: Yup I’m going to give it to you straight from the horse’s mouth.
Nathali: Okay.
Greg: This football design represents the line of scrimmage so we’re going to put
it back down that’s going to establish the line of scrimmage at. As a
defensive player you want to kick as much of that ball as you can when
you get in your stance so when the ball is here you want to get your hand
right about right here and make sure your chin and your eyesight is
coming right down on your hand.
Nathali: So you think it’s that close. Wow, okay.
Greg: Yeah.
Nathali: Wow, okay.
Greg: So when you get that down that close you have to watch the ball. Do not
listen to the quarterback’s snap count because the quarterback nowadays
are getting fancy when they snap counts, they get more harder where they
almost log in false system of a ball their hike “Hut! Hut!” you know we
don’t fall for that we watch the ball we don’t listen to one of that.
Nathali: What was that Hut! Hut!
Greg: Hut! Hut!
[Laughter]
Nathali: So we’re going to get back to serious.
Greg: So we want to get back there and when that ball moves we take— no we
want to keep our hands in front of us too because one reason why we have
this hand here so it’s the quickest motion to the guy in front of us so we
have it back here so it will take awhile so we want to put it here.
Nathali: So we don’t want— just that split second.
Greg: Exactly, it makes a big difference.
Nathali: You’ll lose.
Greg: So when we got the ball movement boom! You come right at it like that.
Nathali: Oh man.
Greg: Alright
Nathali: Wow, you’re scary.
Greg: So what I’m going to do I’m going to play a little offense on this okay.ou
Nathali: Oh okay.
Greg: What I want you to do is see you in your stance. I’m going to move the
ball real quick and I want to see you take off.
Nathali: Okay.
Greg: So that’s element, that’s key because we wouldn’t huddle, we wouldn’t
know the snap count no other play but we know we can move fast enough
and disrupt the whole rhythm of the play, okay.
Nathali: That’s why you guys are key?
Greg: And the ball is key to us winning too. Once we move on ball movement
we normally beat these big slugs.
Nathali: The big slugs
Greg: Because one think I don’t mean to cut the tape short but one thing we do
and remember I can play 260 and look like this but we know the other guy
on the other side of the ball he weighed 260 but he looks totally different,
do you know what I mean. He got more of it here you know that type of
deal so okay I’m on—
Nathali: So you’re more of a pure athlete?
Greg: We got more of it here.
Nathali: There we go.
Greg: [Laughs] So what I’m going to do I’m going to get you to a stance I’m
going to move the ball I want to see you come off on the movement of the
ball.
Nathali: Is this called the three-point stance?
Greg: Exactly, three-point stance
Nathali: Okay. So—
Greg: There you go looking good girl.
Nathali: Yeah like this?
Greg: If you had me for a coach that would be off for one night.
Alright “Hut! Hut!”
No, see that’s what I want to get to—
Nathali: Oh! You got me I was going on the hike and not the ball.
Greg: And that’s the ball 101, we never go on the quarterback sound. We also
watch the ball.
Nathali: You got me.
Greg: You want to try again?
Nathali: Yeah, can we try it again? Thank you okay ready.
Greg: I’m going to bark it out now you just watch the ball. Okay, Hut! Hut! Hut!
Hut!
That’s it that’s just great, that’s what makes us great right there.
Nathali: Right there.
The Pro’s Corner Greg Townsend
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