How to coach youth flag football

You do not need to have played football to coach it well. Youth flag football rewards coaches who teach a few things clearly and give every kid a turn. This guide explains how to do that and why it works, with links to the plays, drills and practice plans that put it into action.

What your job really is

A youth flag coach has three jobs, in this order. Keep every kid safe and moving. Teach a small set of skills well. Give every kid a fair turn, including at quarterback. Winning follows from the second job more than from any clever play: a team that snaps cleanly, catches the easy pass and pulls flags gives the other team very few chances.

That is good news for a new coach. You do not need a thick playbook. You need a plan for what to teach first.

The rules that shape every play

Five NFL FLAG style rules explain almost everything about how flag football plays look. Learn these and the plays on this site will make sense:

• The QB cannot run the ball across the line.¹ Every run is a handoff or a pitch to someone else.
• No blocking or screening, ever.² Players get open by running routes, and runners get free with fakes and speed.
• The rusher starts 7 yards back, and the QB has 7 seconds to throw.³⁴ The rushing rules guide explains the rest.
• No-run zones in the 5 yards before midfield and the goal line mean you need a pass play you trust.⁵
• Every player is an eligible receiver, including the center.⁶

Leagues change some of these, especially for young divisions. Read the rules guide once, then ask your league what is different.

How kids learn a skill: walk, jog, full speed

Every new skill goes through the same three steps. Walk it so every kid knows where to go. Jog it so the timing starts to show. Then run it at full speed against a defender. Skipping straight to full speed is the most common mistake new coaches make: the kids who already know it look good, and everyone else guesses.

• Show, then say one thing. Demonstrate with a kid, then give one coaching point, not five. "Eyes on the belt" beats a speech about footwork.
• Short lines, lots of reps. Split into two or three groups with a parent helper at each, so no kid waits more than a few turns.
• Fix one thing per rep. Praise what went right, name the one fix, and send them again.
• End with a game. Any drill can finish as a contest. Kids remember what they did in the game part.

The practice plans are built on this pattern, with times for each block by age.

Teach flag pulling first

Flag pulling is the whole defense, and it is the one skill every player uses on every defensive snap. Teach it on day one and warm up with it every week.

1. Close the space under control. Run hard toward the ball carrier, then shorten your steps about 3 yards away so you can change direction.
2. Break down. Feet wide, knees bent, hands out in front. This is the ready position that keeps a runner from juking past.
3. Eyes on the belt, not the ball or the head. The hips go where the runner goes; heads and shoulders fake.
4. Grab and rip. Grab the flag, not the jersey, and pull it down and away. Then hold it up high so the referee sees it.

Common mistakes: diving at the runner, chasing from straight behind instead of taking an angle, and grabbing the shirt. Defenders may dive to pull a flag, but may not tackle, hold or run through the ball carrier.⁷ Good drills to teach it: the cone box flag pull, the sideline flag pull and sharks and minnows for pure fun.

Teach the other side too. A ball carrier may not guard the flags with a hand, the ball or the jersey.⁷ Show your runners how to keep both hands away from the hips and win with a quick cut instead.

Four starter routes

Your offense needs only four routes to start. Each has a clear shape a young player can picture, and together they cover short, middle and deep:

• Flat: a quick run toward the sideline, 1 to 2 yards past the line. The easiest catch in football.
• Slant: two steps up, then a sharp cut toward the middle. Beats a rusher because it is open fast.
• Curl: run about 6 yards, stop and turn back to the QB. Teaches receivers to come back to the ball.
• Go: run straight and fast. Even when it is not thrown, it pulls the deep defender away from the short routes.

Put a cone at each break point so kids learn the depth by running to it, and use the route tree on cones drill. Add the out, post and corner once kids can catch on the run. The full list with diagrams is on the route tree page.

Snap, handoff and catch

Three ball skills decide more youth games than any play call, because a dropped snap or a fumbled handoff ends the play.

• The snap. Every kid should snap and every kid should take a snap. The center-QB snap drill ends with the center running a route, which is how it happens in games.
• The handoff. The QB puts the ball into the runner's pocket; the runner does not reach for it. Practice it both directions with the handoff exchange drill.
• The catch. Hands make a diamond above the waist and a basket below it. Diamond hands partner catch is a good first-week drill.

Defense: man first, then zone

There are two ways to cover receivers. In man-to-man, each defender follows one player. In zone, each defender guards an area. Man is easier to teach young kids, because the job is one sentence: "stay with your buddy." Zone asks each player to know where the area is, watch the QB and let a receiver go to the next defender, which usually comes later.

Teach zone drops with the zone drop and break drill, and read the defense guide for each defense's jobs and the plays that beat it.

Install your plays in order

Add plays one or two at a time, and only add a new one when the last one works at full speed. For a 7 to 10 year old team, this order builds each play on the one before:

For 5 and 6 year olds, stop at three or four: Double Back Dive, Sweep Right, Curl-Flat and Reverse. Browse every play by age on the 6U, 8U and 10U pages. When you have your list, print it as wristband cards in the playbook builder, or draw your own plays in the play designer.

Plan practice around the plays

A good practice warms up with flag pulling, teaches one skill, runs the plays you have installed, and ends with a scrimmage. Our plans for 6U, 8U, 10U and 12U lay that out minute by minute. Start the season with the first practice plan.

Game day: flow, substitutions and fair play time

A calm game day comes from deciding things before the game, not during it.

• Script your first few plays and name your no-run-zone pass. When the ball is inside one, you already know the call.
• Rotate on a plan. NFL FLAG allows substitutions during any dead ball.⁹ Decide before the game who sits each series so every kid plays about the same amount, and so nobody sits twice in a row. The checklist has a rotation card you can copy.
• Track it. A parent with a pencil marks each series. It takes the guesswork out, and it answers the question before a parent asks.
• Rotate QB and center at young ages. Every kid should touch the ball. Save specialists for older divisions.
• Call plays one way. Wristbands, a fast huddle or signals; how to call plays covers each. NFL FLAG does not allow electronic communication with players.¹⁰
• Know where you may stand. NFL FLAG lets one coach on the field before the snap at 8U, and after the snap at 7U and 6U; older divisions coach from the sideline.¹¹

Some rec leagues also set their own minimum playing time. Ask for it, and plan your rotation to beat it, not just meet it.

Working with parents

• Tell parents at the start how playing time and positions work, so nobody is surprised later.
• Give parents jobs: one keeps the rotation chart, one runs a drill station, one handles snacks and water.
• Ask sideline parents to cheer effort and leave the coaching to you, so kids hear one voice.
• Keep post-game talk short: one thing that went well, one thing to practice.

Coach requirements

Every league sets its own requirements for volunteer coaches, often a background check and sometimes a safety course. Ask your league before the first practice. For NFL FLAG leagues, the one stated requirement is a background check.¹²

Where to go next

• First-season checklist: the to-do list for before the season and game day.
• Positions: what Q, C, X, Y and Z mean, and which kid plays where.
• 5 on 5 plays and 7 on 7 plays: every play with a diagram and coaching points.
• Drill library: every drill linked above, and more.
• Glossary: any football word you run into.