Football has a reputation for being a sport that relies on brute strength. While size and power are important, they aren't the only things that separate the average running back from their superstar counterpart. Football players must be able to move quickly, accelerate after contact and change direction quickly to stay one step ahead of their opponents. These five football speed and agility drills will help improve your overall speed, quickness, and agility so you can dominate on the field:
Hill Sprints
Hill sprints are a great way to build speed, power, and leg strength. They're also excellent for developing agility and quickness, along with mental toughness. Hill sprints are an excellent workout for endurance as well!
To perform hill sprints:
- Find a hill that isn't too steep (or you can use stairs). The steeper the hill/stairs, the harder this drill will be! I recommend starting with a moderate incline (about 30 degrees). If you want more of a challenge later on, try increasing your angle each time until it becomes too much for you to handle comfortably without losing your form or technique--but don't worry about going overboard just yet! Just focus on ensuring every repetition looks good before moving on to another one, and repeat this process until completion!
Football Speed Drill
- Warm up the muscles you will be using.
- Do not overdo it. If you feel like you are pushing yourself too hard, stop and take a break before continuing with the drill.
- Don't forget to stretch after each drill! This is important because it helps prevent injury and allows for better flexibility when running at full speed.
- Don't do this drill on concrete or asphalt; use grass instead! You don't want to risk injuring yourself by slipping on a hard surface while trying to run as fast as possible.
30-Yard Shuffle
- Get a partner and stand about 10 yards apart from each other.
- Begin by dropping your hips, bending your knees, and keeping your back straight as you shuffle about 30 yards in one direction at a fast pace for 2-3 minutes (or until you feel winded). Then return to where you started, turn around, and repeat for another 2-3 minutes going in the opposite direction on the field.
Y-Drill
The Y-Drill is a drill that focuses on quickness and speed. To perform this drill, you will need to set up cones in the shape of a Y on your field. Start at the bottom of the Y and sprint to the top, then repeat for specified reps before moving on to another running drill (such as ladder running).
Lateral Box Drill
The Lateral Box Drill is a great way to improve speed and agility. The drill also helps with quickness, footwork, balance, coordination, and reaction time.
To perform this drill:
- Start at the far right corner of the box (A) with your feet together or slightly staggered (left foot forward).
- Lean forward into an athletic stance with knees bent slightly; keep your chest up and your eyes focused straight ahead throughout the entire movement.
- Jump laterally over the top of the first line on the floor, landing softly on the balls/toes of both feet simultaneously in the opposite direction from where you started.
- Repeat for desired repetitions, then switch sides.
It's important to build speed, agility, and quickness in football.
It's important to build speed, agility, and quickness in football. Speed, agility, and quickness are all important in any sport, but they're especially crucial for football players. The ability to run fast will allow you to get away from defenders and catch passes before defenders can reach you. Agility drills help improve your balance and coordination so that you can make sharp cuts on the field without losing control of your body or falling over.
You can do several different types of drills at home or in the gym with a partner with similar goals to yours for improving their speed and agility (or just someone who wants to work out). If possible, find cones or markers on which one player stands while another runs around them doing various exercises such as jumping rope or sprinting back and forth between two lines marked off by cones placed about 10 feet apart.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many different ways to improve your speed and agility. The best thing about these drills is that they're easy to do at home or in the gym. If you have access to a hill, try doing some hill sprints! You can also use them as warm-ups before practice or games so everyone on your team gets a good workout at once instead of focusing on one person at a time who happens to be faster than everyone else (which happens often).
