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Why Rest and Recovery Matter: The Balance Between Sympathetic Stress and Parasympathetic Repair in Young Athletes

Athletes often train hard to become faster, stronger, and more skilled—but without proper rest and recovery, their bodies can’t fully benefit from that training. This is especially true for youth and adolescent athletes, like those playing football, who are still growing and developing. A key part of this

How NFL Athletes Handle Pressure: 4 Strategies that Work with Millions Watching

Have you ever had 17 million people watching you on TV while 60,000 more sit in a stadium watching you do your job? Every movement, decision, and outcome is scrutinized. Your performance dictates your job security—and your family’s livelihood. That’s the reality in pro sports. But

Strength, Power, and Speed: The Basics of Progression

In sports science, strength, power, and speed are foundational pillars of athletic performance, intricately linked yet distinct in their contributions. One quality builds upon the next over time, and no adaptation is more important than a base strength level. However, as athletes get more advanced the time spent generating more

How to Throw the Back Shoulder Fade

The back shoulder fade is one of the cleanest answers in football against bump-and-run man coverage—especially when the DB is on top of the go route. If the corner has cut off the vertical, you’re not winning downfield. So instead, you throw the receiver open backward, not forward.

What It’s Like to Be Signed as an Undrafted Free Agent

The NFL Draft just wrapped up. Dreams were made over the course of seven rounds. But what most people don’t realize is that even more players find their shot after the draft — as undrafted free agents. Each year, 259 players are drafted into the NFL. Historically, about 75–80%

Eccentric Loading: Enhancing Strength and Resilience in Throwers

Eccentric loading, encompassing accentuated eccentric loads (AEL) and controlled eccentric tempos, is a potent training strategy to boost tissue load tolerance, maximal strength, and Titin accumulation while mitigating tissue strain. For throwers, whose flexor, pronator, posterior rotator cuff, and latissimus dorsi endure extreme eccentric forces, this approach is vital for

Off-Season Ramp Up: Why Volume Before Intensity

When crafting a throwing program for quarterbacks in football, prioritizing volume (total throws) before intensity (throwing effort) is the safer and smarter approach. Muscles, tendons and ligaments are best trained by establishing endurance, range and capacity first. Following these initial concepts while undergoing a detailed arm care and strengthening plan

Post Snap: Three Seconds in an NFL Quarterback's Shoes

The ball is snapped with three seconds left on the play clock. 22 moving parts impart force into the turf to generate movement. Wide outs and defensive backs running at 19+ miles per hour. 300 lb lineman fight 250 lb defensive ends in hand to hand combat. Linebackers blitzing at

Anterior Instability in Throwers: A Practical Understanding

Anterior instability in the throwing athlete is a common occurrence with varying degrees of severity and complexity. Anterior instability plagues baseball players and quarterbacks due to the intense, repetitive nature of overhead throwing. This condition often stems from a lax anterior capsule, subscapularis strains, or ligament sprains, which hinder the

Decoding Cover 1: An In-Depth Look at the Popular NFL Coverage

In the complex world of football, understanding the nuances of various defensive coverages is crucial for a quarterbacks and offensive coordinator success. One such coverage that demands thorough comprehension is Cover 1. In this blog post, we will delve into the intricacies of Cover 1, advantages, drawbacks, and variations (e.

A Beginner’s Guide to Applied Biomechanics in Sports

Applied biomechanics uses principles from physics to understand and improve human movement. In sports this allows science to explain the why and the how of elite athletes' movements. The goal of applied biomechanics is NOT to provide a rigid guide telling the athlete how TO move, instead it serves

Super Bowl Sunday as an NFL Quarterback

This post was originally published as an op-ed on The Athletic in 2023 and updated for context in 2025. Twenty-one years of tackle football and training have led to this game. From jumping rope with my brother, Bobby, when I was 5 and my helmet being way too big to

The ABCs of Adolescent Training: 6 Main Movement Patterns for Better Athleticism

Every youth/teen athlete should simplify their training by mastering six base movement patterns. Increasing load, intensity or volume over time within these lifting domains can help develop a strong foundation to layer more advanced lifting and skill development on later in life. These are the basic moves that help

Passing Strength and Field-and-Boundary Defenses: A Quarterback’s Guide

Understanding defensive coverage structures is critical for quarterbacks. Two key concepts—passing strength and field-and-boundary coverage—dictate how defenses align and adjust. What Is Passing Strength? Passing strength is the side of the formation with the most eligible receivers. For example: * In a 3-by-1 formation (tight end, slot receiver, and

Visual vs. Match Zone: A Quarterback’s Guide

Understanding zone defense is critical to quarterback success. Two common zone schemes—match zone and visual zone—can align similarly but behave differently. Here’s the breakdown. Match Zone Defense In match zones, defenders focus on receivers and adapt to route concepts. While still categorized as zone defense, match zone

Do You Want to Develop New Sport Skills? Should You Verbally Cue or Constrain?

Motor learning refers to the acquiring, fine-tuning, and recall of skills. Whether a post-stroke patient or an NFL quarterback, learning, refining, and recalling skills require proper “teaching” methods to optimize outcomes. Two prominent approaches are constraint-based learning/dynamic ecological and verbal cueing. Determining which is more impactful depends on the

Enhance Arm Strength & Recovery with Arm Care: Eccentric, Isometric & Dynamic Correctives

Arm care has become a popular term among quarterbacks, but what does quality arm care really involve? In essence, arm care is a strategic approach to strengthening, stabilizing, and mobilizing the muscles essential for throwing. Effective arm care comprises three main types of exercises: eccentric, isometric, and dynamic. Each type

How Experiential Learning Transforms Athletes: Unlock Quarterback Development with Learn By Doing

In sports, the difference between good and elite transcends physical development and instead hinges on skill development, skill recall and cognitive processing. This is why the topic of skill acquisition, motor learning and feedback loops are at the heart of athletic development. For positions like quarterback, success depends on: technical

What is Cover 0? Why Are NFL Teams Playing More of It?

Cover 0 is an all-out blitz. The defense sends one more player than the offense can block, forcing the remaining defenders into one-on-one matchups. The feature image illustrates it. It’s a high-risk strategy—one missed tackle or a defender slipping, and the offensive head coach could be sprinting down

Warm Up to Throw DON'T Throw to Warm Up

What is a pre-throw routine? Traditionally, quarterbacks often begin their warm-up before a game by doing some light stretching and then immediately starting to throw the football on the field. They might toss the ball between 5 to 30 yards while their teammates watch, quickly transitioning from warm-up to actual

Ditch the Cones & Ladders: How Realistic Training Improves Quarterback Performance

If you've ever questioned why quarterbacks still run cone and ladder drills, you’re not alone. These drills look great for social media—lots of fast feet and fancy movements—but they’re missing the mark for actual on-field performance. It’s necessary to talk about why the

How Much to Throw During a Game Week

Preparing for game day isn’t just about throwing as much as possible—it’s about being strategic with your volume. Early in the week, you should maximize your throws, working on precision and mechanics while your arm is fresh. As game day approaches, you taper down, ensuring your arm

"Going to Get It" as the Bullet's Start Flying: Overstriding and Losing Rotation—How Both Hurt Your Throw

When the pressure’s on—whether in practice or a game—it’s natural to want to "go get" your target. This instinct to get on your toes, lean forward, and reach for the receiver is a common biomechanical mistake made by quarterbacks at all levels, from high

How Muscle and Tendon Properties Impact Power Development in Athletes

Power development in athletes is the cornerstone of many sports that require explosive movements, such as sprinting, jumping, and throwing. Achieving optimal power output hinges on the relationship between muscle properties and tendon elasticity. Muscles generate the force necessary for movement, while tendons act as elastic storage units, transferring and

How to Read NFL Defensive Coverages in Less than 3 Seconds

What would you do if you had to decipher an NFL coverage in less than three seconds? While daunting, you have tools at your disposal to ensure an accurate diagnosis. This blog will take you through common indicators that can help you read the coverage faster and, as a result,

Understanding Mechanotransduction: The Pathway to Enhanced Tendon and Muscle Synthesis

Mechanotransduction is a biological process that translates mechanical stimuli into biochemical signals, ultimately influencing cellular behavior and tissue adaptation. Essentially, when we provide adequate load to our tissue, tendon, bone, etc.; this stimulus leads to a chemical process to signal growth. This process is pivotal in the context of the

The Best Scientific Approach to Improving Range of Motion in Athletes

Introduction: Athletes often face challenges related to restricted range of motion (ROM) at times, which can limit performance and increase the risk of injury. Sometimes, due to the demands of a full season or the overuse patterns of a sport motion, limited ROM can impact the ability to access safe

Optimizing Performance: Supplements Used by Professional Athletes

The average shelf life of an NFL player is three years, and most careers are cut short because of injury. So what’s the equation to increase your chances of staying healthy and playing well? Supplements + Sleep + Nutrition + Robust Training + Recovery Modalities = A longer career I realize that is not

How Does Early Extension Impact Velocity?

Early extension is an issue in most rotational sports. Early extension impacts the way the femur interacts with the pelvis, and the pelvis with the spine. When throwing, early extension is usually a product of pushing off the back foot in an attempt to develop velocity. However, a more efficient

How to Learn an NFL Playbook

Z-Mo to Craft Rt. X-Short Alert Return 17 Wanda Push Sift (can) 3 Jet X-Dino F-Blimp on the Turbo The alien language above is a play call in the NFL, and each word we scream in the huddle provides instruction to the O-line, running backs, wideouts, and tight ends on

Laying the Groundwork: A Quarterback’s Guide to Early Offseason Throwing Workouts

As a quarterback, the complexity and intensity of your throwing workouts change depending on how near you are to the start of the season. Jumping over cones, evading rushers, and making 100+ throws in a day is not advisable if you are in the first month of the offseason. The

Physical Assessments for Throwing: Unlock Your Potential, Improve Performance & Avoid Injury

The start to improving how an athlete moves, performs or throws, is a detailed and comprehensive physical assessment. The goal of this assessment is to correlate these findings with the biomechanical findings on motion capture or video. Many times, larger inefficiencies in movement/mechanics can be partially explained by more

Gaining an Edge: How Quality Walkthroughs Increase Quarterback Processing Speed

22 of the best athletes in the world all start moving at the same time. You have 2-3 seconds to parse through that amoeba of bodies, make a split second decision on where to throw the ball and then execute a complex biomechanical movement - all before you get rocked

Training Rotational Power: Med Ball Basics

Development of power as an athlete is an important physical factor. Many athletic qualities require movements on the power - speed spectrum of the force velocity curve. Although total power output (squat, deadlift, CMJ, broad jump, etc) does have carryover to rotational power/speed, training power in the specific plane

Smooth is Fast: Why Fluidity Is Important for Throwing

Throwing a football is more ballerina than meathead. Think fluid, powerful, and smooth — a similar essence to the ballerina's gliding at Lincoln Center or watching Aaron Rodgers effortlessly flick the ball at MetLife Stadium. Like dancers moving through precise stages, a quarterback's throw unfurls in a

The Thrower's Shoulder (Part 3): Understanding Typical Injuries (Exploring the Rotator Cuff)

If you have not read Part 1 or Part 2, detailing the most crucial parts of anatomy and introductory biomechanics of the shoulder and surrounding structures please read those sections first. In this blog post we will talk about the common injuries seen in a thrower's shoulder, both

Dismantling Misconceptions on Quarterback Drop Depth

"Get depth on your drop" is a common coaching point extolled from grade school to NFL coaches. This is overcoached and incorrect. While depth on the initial steps, especially when under center, is valuable, the final steps of the drop should basically be on top of each other.

How to Grip a Football

This a quick blog on the standard operating procedure for gripping a football. It's divided into four sections including finger placement, palm space, factors that influence spin, and wrist position. These are all Tom Gormely's thoughts as he is the expert on biomechanics. I simply combined

Three Principles Behind Navigating an NFL Career as a Longshot

It's 64 degrees on a breezy spring day in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. I take a walk because the fatigue of staring at the NFL draft for the last two days wears on me. It’s now Day 3, the last day for a team to draft you or

An NFL Quarterback's Diet for Peak Performance

In professional sports, your body is your job, and honing it to its peak is just another edge you can create over your competition. Optimizing your body requires a meticulous focus on your health, with nutrition playing a pivotal role. While this isn't medical advice, I've

Pre-Snap: The 25 Inputs a Quarterback Processes in 25 Seconds

There are less than 100 people in the world every year that play quarterback in the NFL. Within that 100, some of the elite quarterbacks command a $40 million+ salary. How can they command this massive amount? The simple answer is the supply is low, the demand is high and

How does the Kyle Shanahan/Sean McVay coaching tree dice up defenses? Here’s the process

I originally wrote this article for The Athletic on January 27th, 2024. Pundits acclaim the skill of the play callers at the top of their game right now and a good majority come from the Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan tree. If those two are the trunk, then the branches include

Think You're Throwing Like a Pro? These Sneaky Flaws Could Be Sabotaging Your Game (and How to Fix Them Fast)

Mastering the quarterback position is a symphony of skill, where cognition, perception, and action flawlessly harmonize to produce velocity, accuracy, and ultimately, victory. But even the most seasoned signal-callers can fall prey to subtle flaws in their biomechanics, flaws that resurface, sabotaging both performance and longevity. Let's peel

How NFL Quarterbacks Structure their Offseason Throwing Program (Part 2)

Sean Parker has a famous quote that says, “Running a start-up is like eating glass. You just start to like the taste of your own blood.” You can switch “running a start-up” to “playing NFL quarterback” and that quote holds true. The quarterback position is hard. It requires a consistent

The Thrower’s Shoulder (Part 2): A Few of the Main Biomechanical Factors to Know

The base to build upon for training, throwing development, and arm care is a deep understanding of the basic anatomy of the shoulder (covered in Part 1). The initial goal should always be to better understand the parts of the shoulder complex and their individual actions. Understanding this basic anatomy

How NFL Quarterbacks Structure their Offseason Throwing Program (Part 1)

Pick up a ball, throw routes. Rinse, repeat. This was how my throwing workouts were structured as a high school and college player. No thought was put into undulating volume to ensure my arm did not fall off, when and how to integrate game-like movements into my throwing, pre and

The Thrower’s Shoulder (Part 1): The Functional and Relevant Anatomy of the Shoulder Complex

The shoulder is the most mobile joint in the human body with a remarkable range of motion. The shoulder has an ability to move within 3 degrees of freedom (DOF): Flexion & Extension, Abduction & Adduction, Internal Rotation & External Rotation. The mobility of the shoulder allows it to complete

Deciphering Football’s Personnel Codes on Offense and Defense

What is 11 personnel? What is nickel defense? These terms, though perhaps esoteric to the uninitiated, are the keys to understanding a layer in the cake of football strategy. Each grouping, from the common 11 personnel to the less frequent grouping of 13 personnel, prompts a specific defensive counter, affecting

What Constitutes a Good Warm-up?

A good warm-up is essential before engaging in any physical activity, as it helps prepare your body and mind for the upcoming demands of the exercise. The primary goals of a warm-up are to increase blood flow to muscles, raise body temperature, improve joint flexibility, enhance movement patterning, excite the

The Nuances of Playing Quarterback Better Under Center

There's an art to perfecting the quarterback position, and while many players and fans might only focus on the arm strength or decision-making prowess of a quarterback, the mechanics of what happens directly under the center are often underappreciated, yet crucial. My entire career from high school through

"Podcast Spotlight: Accelerating QB Thought Process, Secrets of Elite Coaches, and Mastering Complex Calls"

Description Explore quarterbacking on this podcast with Tampa Bay Buccaneers' quarterback and co-founder of Kinetex, John Wolford. In a detailed episode of the 'Coach and Coordinator Podcast', John collaborates with Dub Maddox, shedding light on a variety of topics. The episode touches on offensive strategy, the decoding

How to Integrate Biomechanical Assessments, Skill Acquisition Motor Theory and On-Field Coaching to Enhance QB Play

Podcast reposted from The Athletic Football Show ft. Dr. Tom Gormely, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS This podcast episode with Co-Founder Dr. Tom Gormely, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS details the integrative approach to improving QB skillset within a synergistic team environment. He as well as Will Hewlett (QB Coach), explain their

Inside the Huddle: Unraveling the Leadership Knot in the NFL

Leadership in the NFL is a complex puzzle. As a five-year veteran, I've seen its multifaceted nature firsthand. In this blog, and with the help of some Greek mythology, I share three characteristics of quality leadership that I've gleaned from my journey: antifragility, authenticity, and knowledgeability.

Decoding Coverages: A Deep Dive into Cover 2

Troy Polamalu is eyeing the play clock, knowing that you typically snap the ball with close to no time left. He holds his stance, muscles taut, aiming to deceive you into thinking it's a Cover 3 Blitz. You yell for the ball and that blur of hair jettisons

How Do the Shoulder Blade, Spine and Rib Cage Influence Throwing

The shoulder blade (scapula), spine, and rib cage all play important roles in the arthrokinematics and kinematics of shoulder motion. Understanding how they work together is crucial for proper shoulder function, especially in activities that require high-level throwing, such as playing quarterback. The shoulder experiences a tremendous load when throwing

The Biomechanics of Throwing a Football: The Science Made Simple

1) Hip-Shoulder Separation: The Key to Power Hip-shoulder separation angle and timing are crucial factors that influence throwing in sports. Hip-shoulder separation angle refers to the angle between the pelvis and the shoulders during the throwing motion. This angle serves as the transition of power from the pelvis (lower half)

Throwing Motion: Why They Do Not All Look the Same

A quarterback's throwing motion is a complex biomechanical process that involves multiple joints, muscles, and motor pathways. Josh Allen’s motion looks different than Brock Purdy’s whose looks different than Jalen Hurts. The takeaway from that statement is two things: 1. No one throwing motion is exactly

Kinesthetics and Skill Expression in Sports

Why is Kinesthetic Awareness important in Skill Development and Athletics? Proprioception is an important variable both in life and in specific athletic skill, however, kinesthetic awareness really serves as the driver behind both skill acquisition and coordinated skill expression. Athletes/individuals have varying degrees of kinesthetic awareness at birth (possible

Maximizing Quarterback Performance: The Benefits of Decision Making, Rush Evasion, and Visual Impairment Drills

As a quarterback, throwing routes during the offseason is essential but that alone does not sufficiently mimic the physiological demands of on-field play. You can scour the internet and find throwing drills that incorporate cones and ladders but when do you ever see a quarterback chopping his feet and then

Maximizing Quarterback Performance: How to Watch Film Like a NFL Quarterback

All football players, especially quarterbacks, are beaten over the head with the saying, “watch film”. No one ever tells you how though. Traditionally, watching film is an inherently passive learning process. Numerous studies show that active learning i.e., learn by doing is better than passive learning i.e., learn

A Week as an NFL Quarterback: Saturday

Cue Elton John singing, “Cause Saturday night’s the night I like” and I could not agree more with that assessment. Welcome to the weekend as an NFL quarterback and just like the aforementioned artistic legend, I enjoy Saturday nights. The grind of meetings and practice has finished and tomorrow

Left Foot vs Right Foot Up From an NFL Quarterback's Perspective

Patrick Mahomes plays with his right foot up, Aaron Rodgers plays with his left foot up and Tom Brady has done both, so which stance is the most conducive to success? I frequently get asked this question by younger quarterbacks and their parents. Unfortunately, the anti-climactic answer is… drumroll… that

A Week as an NFL Quarterback: Friday

As an NFL quarterback, in-season, you work seven days a week. Friday, on a relative basis, is one of the shorter days and as a result, earns the league-wide nickname “Fast Friday”. To my knowledge, the majority of NFL teams participate in this scheduling, with required team activities ending around

A Week as an NFL Quarterback: Thursday

Thursday edges Wednesday as the hardest day of the practice week for an NFL Quarterback. While this is my opinion, I would venture to say most comrades would agree. Bodies are sore from yesterday, practice is more intense, and more information is thrown at you. You must now know the

Ecological Dynamics and Dynamic Systems Theory (Actionable Mechanism & Example)

When learning new sport skills and developing a motor plan, the athlete must reach a point of autonomous recall that fits the environment and task at hand. As discussed in [a previous blog post], motor learning can be influenced and driven through the correct steps of the teacher and learner.

The Basics of Motor Learning: How Athletes Learn New Sport Skills & Movements

Motor learning is an evolving and emerging area of sports science. In physical therapy education, there is a broad focus on motor learning strategies and skill acquisition as it pertains to neuro-rehabilitation (i.e. post-CVA). More recently, sports science has picked up the concepts of scientifically-informed motor learning strategies and

A Week as an NFL Quarterback: Wednesday

This post was originally published as an op-ed on The Athletic. It’s not a Wednesday unless you’re stressed the f— out. Wednesdays in the NFL are the first day of mandatory meetings and practice for an upcoming opponent. As a quarterback, this entails processing and retaining copious amounts