H-back

The H-Back (from the English hybrid back ) is a playing position in the offense in American football . This is a player with the physique of a tight end , but who stands behind the line of scrimmage like a fullback .

In the early days of the Super Bowl era , it was common for one's own offense to hold up the opponent's pass rush on the line of scrimmage through the offensive line and tight end. But in the early 1980s, many defenses developed so much pressure that the need arose to block thoroughly behind the line of scrimmage. Since ordinary running or fullbacks were not trained for this, head coaches such as B. Joe Gibbs of the Washington Redskins the H-back one, of which a block capabilities tight end with the rearward offset formation of a full tracks combined . Gibbs introduced the position mainly to counter the strong pass rush of the New York Giants led by Lawrence Taylor - but like a fullback, an H-Back is expected to be effective both as a blocker and a ball carrier on running plays .

Web links

• Legend Series: Lawrence Taylor: "How do you stop this guy?" In: spox.com
• Article about the origin of the “staggered tight end”. In: New York Times