ONE OF THE drills that we’ve had success using is the Bags and Shields Gauntlet drill. We’ve found that by incorporating this drill into our practice, our skill player’s balance, ball control and leg drive have greatly improved.
This is also a good time to work on your quarterback’s cadence, footwork and placement of the ball in the carrier’s receiving pocket.
Equipment needed:
4 10 to 14 blocking dummies.
4 2 half shields.
Procedure
The procedure for running this drill is as follows:
1. Instruct your skill players to form a gauntlet with the blocking dummies. Position two players with half shields 3 and 8 yards behind the gauntlet. The players with the dummies are instructed to attack the ball carrier.
2. Position your QB 2 yards in front of the gauntlet and have a skill player in the backfield. Tell these two players which hole is to be attacked.
3. Have the QB call the cadence and hand off to the runner. The runner is to attack and complete the gauntlet and then spin off of the two half shields.
4. Every player must complete the drill twice.
5. Penalize any player who fumbles with laps or up-downs.
Areas To Check:
8 QB’s Cadence. Make sure it’s loud enough and consistent.
8 QB’s Footwork. Make sure the QB pivots and doesn’t bang pads with the ball carrier.
8 Forming The Ball Pocket. Make sure the pocket is formed in the abdomen area and not up high.
8 QB’s Ball Placement. Make sure the QB places the ball in the pocket given by the ball carrier.
8 Check Balance, Body Lean.
8 Leg Drive. Have your ball carriers keep their legs moving.
8 Ability To Spin Away. Stress to runners that they should stay low when they spin.
8 Toughness. This drill can get nasty and you can learn a lot about the toughness of your players when it’s used.