How to Change a Play at the Line of Scrimmage
- 1). Look at the defense as you step to the line of scrimmage. Read it from left to right. If you have a running play called to your left side and the opposing defense is stacked to their right, you have a pretty good idea that the play will not work. Once you have determined that your team is at a disadvantage, it is your responsibility as a quarterback to change the play. Do this by giving your team a new formation, usually signaled by a name or a color. Then call the play. Shout it once to your left, once to your right and give your team a signal as to when the ball will be snapped. The defense may adjust its call but don't change your play a second time.
- 2). When the defense adjusts late in your play call, it is too late to go through a new sequence of plays at the line of scrimmage. However, you and your offensive coordinator have prepared for that before the game. You will use a two-word call to adjust the play call. The first word is the indicator that the play is about to be changed and the second word is the new play itself. This is why you often hear the quarterback bark his signals as loudly as possible. When making a late play switch, he wants to make sure he has everybody's attention so all his teammates understand what is happening.
- 3). Don't adjust the play call just because the last 2 or 3 plays had to be adjusted at the line of scrimmage. You may feel every time you adjust a play something good happens on the field and that you're going to make a change just to confuse the defense even though it may not be necessary. This happens often, but it is the wrong thing to do. Your teammates may have responded to your adjustment, but they usually perform better when the play called in the huddle is the play that is run. It's about preparation and mindset and you don't want to ask your teammates to adjust on the fly too often.
- 4). Try to fake your opponents out by making a "dummy" call at the line of scrimmage. A quarterback like the Colts' Peyton Manning makes adjustments with every snap he takes. He may see as he comes to the line of scrimmage that the defense is in a perfect position to stop the play that had been chosen. By appearing to call an audible at the line of scrimmage, the defense may adjust and give the offense the perfect opportunity to run a play that would not have worked otherwise.
- 5). Watch as much videotape of your upcoming opponent's defense as possible. Learn what they do in in 1st-and-10, 2nd-and-8 and 3rd-and-2. Make a list of play calls that would work in those situations. Your offensive coordinator will also have his list and the two of you should be on the same wave length. If so, you should start the game with the advantage of knowing what plays will work against a given defense. If they have made changes, then you can adjust your play at the line of scrimmage.
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