| Alignment |
The position of the players before the snap. |
Alkuryhmitys (Pinomaa) |
| Audible |
A voiced command to change the play at the line of scrimmage. |
Pelin vaihtosignaali (Pinomaa)
Pelinvaihtokoodi (Arolainen) |
| Back judge |
One of the game officials. Keeps count of the defensive players,
the game clock and oversees among other things the passes and kicks. |
Takatuomari (Pinomaa) |
| Blitz/Blitzing |
The defensive backs or safeties abandon regular tasks and rush the
offense. |
Puolustuksen läpijuoksupeli (Pinomaa)
Läpiryntäys, ryntääminen (Arolainen)
"Blitzata", "blitzi" |
| Blocking |
Moving another player away, or preventing another player from reaching
a destination. |
Blokkaaminen (Pinomaa)
Estäminen, torjuminen (Arolainen) |
| Blocking a kick |
Defensive players manage to prevent the offense's kick play. |
Potkun torjuminen (Pinomaa) |
| Cadence |
The word commands and their rhythm the QB uses to start the offense.
For example "down, set, hut." |
Pelin aloitusmerkit (Pinomaa)
"Kutsu/kutsut" |
| Calling a play |
Selecting the offensive or defensive formation and the way to act
in it. Expressed in codes such as "22 Lead" and "44 Counter Blast". |
Pelin valinta, ilmoittaminen (Pinomaa) |
| Chain gang |
The three officials on the sidelines who hold the down, yards to
go and line of scrimmage marker posts. |
Mittaryhmä (Pinomaa)
"ketjujengi" |
| Cleat |
Plastic spikes or studs placed on the bottom of the player's shoe
to improve their grip. |
"nastat" |
| Coin toss |
Before the beginning of a game, the referee tosses a coin and the
captains of the opposing teams call the toss. The winner gets to choose
whether to start with offense or defense or by choosing the goal to defend
(mainly concerning sunshine and wind conditions). The loser of the coin
toss will get the remaining choice. |
Teikkaus, rahan heitto (Arolainen) |
| Containing a play
(related: contain man, contain responsibility) |
The defensive strategy of forcing the offensive play toward the
center of the field in order to trap the ball carrier . |
Pelin sisään kääntäminen (Pinomaa) |
| Conversion (2-point conversion) |
An extra point attempt worth 2 points.
See "extra point". |
Ylimääräinen yritys (Pinomaa)
"Lisäpiste/lisäpisteyritys" |
| Coverage |
Also "pass coverage": the offensive receivers are "covered" by the
defense. |
Heittopuolustus (Pinomaa) |
| Down |
The offense has four attempts, called downs, to progress 10 yards
from the point they started their offensive turn. Success in this awards
four new downs. |
Yritys, peli (Pinomaa)
"Downi" |
| Drill |
Various training excercises: each player position has specific drills,
for instance for blocking or catching the ball. |
Harjoite (Pinomaa) |
| Drive |
The series of plays a team puts together in an attempt to score. |
"Draivi" |
| End zone |
Both ends of the field have an end zone. The offense tries to enter
the defense's end zone in order to score a touchdown. |
Maalialue (Pinomaa) |
| Extra point |
After scoring a
touchdown, the offense can attempt to score additional two points from an
extra point position near the end zone by getting a ball carrier into the
end zone, or one point by kicking the ball through the goalposts. The
2-point conversion is worth two points, the PAT one point. |
Ylimääräinen yritys (Pinomaa)
"Lisäpiste/lisäpisteyritys" |
| Face mask |
The plastic grill in the front of the helmet. Varying sizes and
thicknesses depending on the player's position. |
Kasvosuojus (Pinomaa) |
| Fair catch |
The player catching a kick off can call for a fair catch by waving
a hand if it seems that a dangerous tackle during the catch is inevitable.
The player can then catch the ball without being tackled, and the offensive
turn begins from the point where the ball was caught, instead of a normal
kick return. |
Vapaa kiinniotto (Pinomaa) |
| Field goal |
Both ends of the
field have goal posts: kicking the ball through them in a normal game
situation is worth three points. A field goal attempt is usually made if
the offense is close enough to the end zone for a successful kick to be
possible, but believes it to be impossible to reach new downs, or is
running out of time and scoring only three points would be enough. Both
scoring and failure to score will both result in a change of offensive
turn. |
Potkumaali (Pinomaa) |
| Flag football |
A non-contact version of football for younger players. In flag football,
the tackles are done by snatching a "flag" from a belt the ball carrier
wears, and for instance blocking is limited. |
Lippupallo, "lippufutis" |
| Fumble |
The ball carrier loses the control of the ball and either team can
take the possession of it: the defense can gain the offensive turn immediately
in this way. |
Rähmäys, pallon pudotus (Pinomaa) |
| Formation |
The positions of the players in the beginning of a play. Usually
related with the position of the running backs. For instance, the offensive
I-formation gets its name from the two running backs being positioned behind
the QB, thus forming the letter "i"; the same logic applies to formations
such as wishbone and T-formation. |
Aloitusmuodostelma, aloitusryhmitys
(Pinomaa)
"Muodostelma", "muoto" |
| Half time |
The non-play period of time between the second and third quarter
of the game. Varies in countries and leagues. Often features a half time
show. |
Puoliaika (Arolainen) |
| Hand off |
The quarterback hands the ball to a player, who then becomes a ball
carrier. |
Pallon ojennus (Pinomaa) |
| Head linesman |
One of the game officials. Primarily oversees offsides and encroachments;
the neutral zone, also the chain gang. Keeps count of the yards to go and
down in progress. |
Linjatuomari (Pinomaa) |
| Hip pads |
Foam pieces placed in pockets inside the player's pants to protect
the hip and pelvic bones. |
Lantiosuojukset (Pinomaa)
"Lonkkasuojat" |
| Huddle |
Before the plays, the offense and the defense gather together to
receive the play and the formation used from the captains. The offensive
team has a limited amount of time to spend in the huddle before starting
the down. |
Aloituskokous, jossa joukkueelle
ilmoitetaan seuraavaksi pelattava peli (Pinomaa)
Aloituskokous (Arolainen)
"Haduli" |
| Interception |
The defensive player manages to catch the offense's pass: the offensive
turn changes immediately. |
Syötön katko (Arolainen)
Eteenpäinsyötön katkaisu (Pinomaa)
"Intteri" |
| Kick off |
The offensive turn changes after scoring a touchdown or a field
goal through a kick off: the other team kicks the ball to the other team,
which the returns it as far as possible and then begins its offense from
the point they are stopped at. A kick off also starts a football game. |
Aloituspotku (Pinomaa)
"Kikoffi" |
| Line of scrimmage |
The level of the ball when it is ready to be snapped, an "imaginary
line" between the two teams. The line of scrimmage is defined by the tips
of the ball when it is set down, and both offense and defense have their
own lines of scrimmage. |
Aloituslinja (Pinomaa) |
| Line judge |
One of the game officials. Oversees among other things the offsides
and the line alignments. |
Kenttätuomari (Pinomaa) |
| Man in motion |
One offensive player, who is not a lineman, can move before the
snap. Many plays are based on this motion, which makes it harder for the
defensive player guarding the man in motion to anticipate what is going
to happen. |
Pelin alkaessa liikkeellä oleva pelaaja (Pinomaa)
Liikkellä oleva pelaaja (Arolainen) |
| Man to man defense |
Having specific defensive players to guard their respective offensive
players. (cf. zone defense) |
Miespuolustus (Pinomaa) |
| Motion |
An offensive player is moving before the snap. See "man in motion".
Often shouted out by the defense. |
"Motioni", "moussoni" |
| Neck roll |
A tube-like foam roll placed between the shoulderpads and the helmet
to protect the neck. |
"Niskasuojus", "niskarulla" |
| Onside kick |
The kick off has to progress 10 yards to be legal. After 10 yards,
the ball becomes free for both teams. An onside kick is a risk play used
to try to gain the possession of the ball immediately again after kick
off. |
Lyhyt aloituspotku (Pinomaa)
"Onsaidi" |
| Passing |
Progressing by throwing the ball. |
"Heittopeli" |
| Pass route |
The movement of the receivers depends on specifically named pass
routes which describe how to move in the play. For instance, a tight turn
back toward the direction the receiver was running from after a certain
amount of yards is known as a "hook" pass route, because it forms a hook
when drawn. The use of specific pass routes allows the QB to know
where the receivers are during the down. |
Heittokuvio (Pinomaa) |
| Pitch |
A lateral or backwards one-handed pass (cf. toss) |
Alakautta syöttö (Pinomaa)
Sivusyöttö (Arolainen)
"Pitsi" |
| Point after touchdown, PAT |
The kicked extra point worth 1 point. See "extra point". |
Ylimääräinen yritys (Pinomaa)
"Lisäpiste/lisäpisteyritys" |
|
Referee |
One of the game officials, the head judge. Has the final decisionmaking
power. Calls the penalties to the team captains. |
Päätuomari (Pinomaa) |
| Running lane |
The "gaps" between the offensive linemen are numbered, and in the
play names the numbers tell the running backs which running lane they are
going to head towards when carrying the ball. |
Juoksulinja (Pinomaa) |
| Rushing |
Progressing by carrying the ball. |
Eteneminen pallon kanssa
(Pinomaa) |
| Sack |
A defensive player tackles the QB behind the offense's line of scrimmage. |
Pelinrakentajan taklaaminen, säkki (Pinomaa) |
| Safety |
A player of the offensive team is tackled or goes down at their
own end zone. Worth two points for the tackling team, results in changing
the offensive turn. |
Oma maali (Pinomaa)
"Seifti" |
| Shift |
Offensive players move in the formation before the snap, for instance
to confuse the defense. |
Paikanvaihto hyökkäyksen aloitusryhmityksessä (Pinomaa)
Paikanvaihto, siirto (Arolainen)
"Shifti" |
| Shoulder pads |
The protective equipment the players wear on their shoulders, made
of hard plastic plates with padding underneath. Size depends on the player's
position: the linemen and the running backs have heavy protection, and
for instance the QB and the kickers have light protection. |
Hartiasuojukset (Pinomaa)
"Harttarit" |
| Snap |
The plays start with the center snapping the ball backwards to the
hands of the QB. |
Aloitussyöttö (Pinomaa)
"Snäppi" |
| Snap count |
The snap is given on the command of the QB. The most usual commands
are "down, set, hut". When the "hut" is shouted, the center performs the
snap. In order to confuse the defense, the snap count can be changed so
that the snap is not given until for instance the third "hut": "down, set,
hut, hut, hut". |
Aloitusmerkki (Pinomaa) |
| Shotgun (formation) |
Both a formation and a type of snap: the center throws the ball
backwards from the snap to the quarterback instead of the QB being right
behind the center to get the ball handed backwards. |
Shotgun-muoto (Arolainen)
"Shotgun" |
| Stance |
The position of the player at the start of a play. For instance,
the linemen often use a three-point stance, which means they are leaning
forward one hand on the ground. This makes it easier to rush forward quickly.
Players who may need to move either back or forth, such as the linebackers,
use a two-point stance in which one leans lightly on the knees in an upright
position. |
Lähtöasento (Pinomaa)
"Stanssi" |
| Tact gloves |
Special type of glove with a sticky palm surface which makes catching
the ball easier. |
"rissuhanskat" |
| Thigh pads |
Foam pieces placed in pockets inside the pants on the thighs to
protect the thigh bones from injury. |
Reisisuojukset (Pinomaa) |
| Time out |
Both teams have three time outs after and before the half time. |
Aikalisä (Pinomaa) |
| Toss |
Two-handed lateral pass of the ball (cf. pitch) |
"Tossi" |
| Touchback |
The ball is put down by a player behind his own goal line when the
ball has been put across the goal line by an opponent. Can happen for instance
in kick offs, when the kick lands in the end zone and the player returning
the kick has no chance to exit the end zone. Does not count as a safety. |
Takalaiton (Pinomaa) |
| Touchdown (TD) |
The offense's ball carrier enters the defense's end zone. Worth
six points. |
Maali (Pinomaa)
"Teedee" |
| Turnover |
Losing of the offensive turn. Can happen if the offensive team cannot
gain the necessary yards on the fourth down, or at any point if the ball
is taken by the defense by making a interception or recovering a fumble. |
Pallon menetys vastustavalle
joukkueelle (Pinomaa) |
| Umpire |
One of the game officials. Mainly follows the linemen, also oversees
for instance kick offs, equipment and substitutes. |
Aputuomari (Pinomaa) |
| Zone defense |
The area of the field the defensive players are on is divided into
different zones (for instance deep zone and outside zone), which are then
guarded by specific defensive players. (cf. man to man defense) |
Aluepuolustus (Pinomaa) |