Flag Football Drills for Practice
New to coaching? Start with how to coach flag football, then pick drills here.
15 free youth flag football drills with diagrams, setup, coaching points and easier or harder versions, sorted by skill and by age. Each one works with the gear most coaches already have: flag belts, cones and a few footballs. No sign-up, nothing to download. Want them in order? Every drill is part of a ready-made practice plan.
By ageFlag pullingBall carryingPassingCatchingRoutesDefenseGames and conditioningStations
Best flag football drills by age
Not sure where to start? These are the drills we would run first with each age group, in roughly this order. Each age also has a full practice plan that puts them on a schedule.
6U Drills for 5 and 6 year olds
Keep every drill short, loud and moving. Kids this age learn by playing games, so the best 6U drills barely feel like drills.
- Sharks and Minnows Flag Game (8 min): The first drill to teach. Everyone runs, everyone pulls flags, and nobody waits in line.
- Cone Box 1-on-1 Flag Pull (8 min): A small box keeps the puller close, so even the youngest kids get real flag pulls.
- Handoff Exchange Drill (8 min): Most 6U offense is handoffs. A few minutes of this every week cuts fumbles.
- Handoff Relay Race (8 min): Handoff practice as a race. Use it at the end of practice when attention runs out.
- Diamond Hands Partner Catch (7 min): Close-range catching in pairs, so every kid gets dozens of catches.
- The Gauntlet (8 min): Run the two-puller version on a short lane for flag pulling and dodging in one drill.
8U Drills for 7 and 8 year olds
8U players can run real routes and take angles on defense. Add drills that teach where to be, not just how to move.
- Sideline Flag Pull Drill (10 min): Teaches the angle: get in front of the runner instead of chasing from behind.
- Cone Weave and Juke Drill (8 min): One move and go. Stops the spinning and dancing that loses flags.
- Route Tree on Cones (9 min): Cones show exactly where to cut, so routes come out at the same depth every time.
- Two-Line Passing Warm-Up (7 min): Every kid throws and catches every rep, which is how QBs are found at this age.
- Center-QB Snap Drill (7 min): Clean snaps before anything else, and the center practices catching too.
- The Gauntlet (8 min): Three pullers in a row gives every kid lots of pulls and lots of moves.
10U Drills for 9 and 10 year olds
10U is where defense gets organized and the QB starts reading one defender. Pick drills that match the plays and defense you run.
- 7-Yard Rusher Drill (8 min): A real rusher speeds up the QB and forces quick throws. Teach it before games start.
- Zone Drop and Break Drill (8 min): The first zone drill: get to the spot, eyes on the QB, break on the throw.
- Route Tree on Cones (9 min): Still the best route drill. Move the cut cones deeper as receivers get faster.
- Over-the-Shoulder Catch Drill (8 min): Deep passes start working at 10U. Most kids have never practiced this catch.
- QB Rollout Throw Drill (8 min): Gives the QB an answer when the rusher gets close.
- Handoff Relay Race (8 min): Keeps run plays clean late in practice, when legs are tired.
12U and up Drills for 11 to 14 year olds
Older players can handle longer, more game-like drills. Spend drill time on the throws and coverages that decide games.
- QB Rollout Throw Drill (8 min): Throwing on the move, to both sides, against a rusher.
- Over-the-Shoulder Catch Drill (8 min): Deep-ball timing between QB and receivers.
- Zone Drop and Break Drill (8 min): Zone spacing and breaking on the ball, for teams that play Cover 2 or Cover 3.
- 7-Yard Rusher Drill (8 min): Rush with a plan: go on the ball, take the straight path and get the hands up.
- Two-Line Passing Warm-Up (7 min): Back the lines up to 12 yards and throw on the run as a sharp warm-up.
- Route Tree on Cones (9 min): Run full-speed routes at game depth before the team install.
All 15 flag football drills at a glance
- Cone Box 1-on-1 Flag Pull (Flag pulling, 8 min): One ball carrier and one flag puller inside a small box of cones.
- Sideline Flag Pull Drill (Flag pulling, 10 min): A ball carrier races for a two-cone gate on the sideline while a flag puller takes an angle to cut them off.
- The Gauntlet (Flag pulling, 8 min): One ball carrier runs down a narrow lane past three flag pullers in a row, and each puller guards only a small area of the lane.
- Cone Weave and Juke Drill (Ball carrying, 8 min): The ball carrier weaves through a row of cones, then has to beat a live defender with one sharp juke before reaching a scoring gate.
- Handoff Exchange Drill (Ball carrying, 8 min): The QB turns and places the ball into the runner's pocket, and the runner squeezes it through a cone gate.
- Center-QB Snap Drill (Passing, 7 min): Pairs practice the snap, then the center runs a short route and catches a pass.
- QB Rollout Throw Drill (Passing, 8 min): The QB rolls out to the right along two cones and throws on the run to a receiver breaking toward the sideline.
- Two-Line Passing Warm-Up (Passing, 7 min): Two lines face each other and throw across, and every passer follows the throw to the back of the other line.
- Diamond Hands Partner Catch (Catching, 7 min): Partners face each other and play catch while practicing the two hand shapes every receiver needs: a diamond for balls at the chest and above, pinkies together for balls below the belly.
- Over-the-Shoulder Catch Drill (Catching, 8 min): Receivers track a reachable pass over the outside shoulder while keeping a clear downfield running lane.
- Route Tree on Cones (Routes, 9 min): Three lines of receivers run three basic routes off cones: a slant, an out and a curl.
- 7-Yard Rusher Drill (Defense, 8 min): Where your division permits it, a designated rusher starts behind the 7-yard mark, leaves on the snap and approaches the passer under control.
- Zone Drop and Break Drill (Defense, 8 min): Three defenders reach their zone landmarks, settle in balance and respond to the released pass.
- Handoff Relay Race (Games and conditioning, 8 min): A team relay race where the football is the baton and every exchange has to be a real handoff.
- Sharks and Minnows Flag Game (Games and conditioning, 8 min): A flag-pulling game in a cone-marked box.
Flag pulling drills
Ball carrying drills
Passing drills
Catching drills
Routes drills
Defense drills
Fun team games
How to run drills in stations
Stations are the fastest way to get more reps into a short practice. Instead of the whole team waiting in one line, split into small groups that each run a different drill at the same time, then rotate.
- Split into groups of 3 to 5. A team of 12 makes three groups of four. Mix fast and slow kids in each group.
- Set up every station before practice. Cones down, footballs out. Setting up during practice is where the time goes.
- Put one adult at each station. Give each parent helper the drill name and one coaching point to repeat. That is all they need.
- Run each station for 5 to 7 minutes. Blow the whistle, and every group moves to the next station in the same direction.
- Head coach floats. Walk between stations and help the one that looks stuck instead of running a station yourself.
A simple three-station rotation for younger teams: Cone Box 1-on-1 Flag Pull, Handoff Exchange and Diamond Hands Partner Catch. For older teams: Route Tree on Cones, the 7-Yard Rusher Drill and Zone Drop and Break. Three stations at 6 minutes each fill about 20 minutes, which leaves plenty of time for the team install and a scrimmage.
Only one helper? Run two stations: the helper runs a simple catching drill while you coach the drill that needs the most teaching.
How many drills should a practice have?
Three drills is right for a 60-minute practice, and two for a 45-minute one. Seven to ten minutes each is plenty. It is better to run the same drill every week and watch kids get good at it than to run a new drill every time. Pick one drill from each skill group, add two plays, and you have a practice. Or start with the first practice of the season plan, and use the 8-week season plan to decide which drills to add each week.
Choose a drill that addresses an observed problem
A dropped handoff calls for an exchange drill; a late pursuit angle calls for flag pulling. Pick one observable action to improve and keep that action in view during the reps. Fast movement and a loud game do not by themselves show whether players learned the intended skill.
Move from the drill into a team assignment
After a short station, use a play or defensive job that needs the same action. Route Tree on Cones leads into a timed passing concept, while Zone Drop leads into a coverage rep. The practice plans show how to leave room for both skill work and a scrimmage.
Content updated