Each week Coach Bass brings his 30 years of NFL coaching experience to USA Football. Email Coach Bass your question.
John sent the following question:
What is the best play to use in the two-minute drill?
Hi John,
There is no one best play to use in a two-minute drill because there are so many factors that come into play like the score (are you ahead or behind?), timeouts remaining, if you have an accurate kicker, and of course, the defense that your opponent is using.
How many yards you need to get on each play will be governed by if you need a field goal or a touchdown to win the game.
As a general rule, you will want to have in your two-minute attack one or two screen passes, a draw play to slow down the pass rush and a short yardage run that results in a new set of downs.
You want pass patterns to the outside of the field that give the receivers a chance to get out of bounds thus stopping the clock. Have a deep IN pass route in the center of the field if it is open, especially if you only need a field goal. Finally, you will want deep routes and possibly a hook and lateral play for the end of the time when it is the last play of the game.
It is important to emphasize to the entire team that they must hustle after every play to get lined up as quickly as possible, especially if the clock is running. The quarterback must make certain that everyone is set and in position prior to starting the next play. This is especially important if the quarterback needs to spike the ball to stop the clock.
The key to me is to not panic and start trying to throw the ball deep into coverage on the very first play of your two-minute drive. This play selection usually results in an interception, killing the drive before the drive has a chance for success.
Practice your two-minute drive every day and make the offense hustle from one spot to the next so that they line up quickly and the QB can call out the play. Change the situation with each drive as to points needed, timeouts available and the time remaining in the game.
Coach Tom Bass
Coach Tom Bass, the technical writer and advisor for USA Football, is a 30-year NFL coach who has also authored several books, including "Play Football the NFL Way" - the first "how to" book ever authorized and published by the NFL. Coach Bass is happy to personally autograph his books to you. Book ordering information can be found at http://www.coachbass.com/.
