Football Basics for Wives or Girlfriends

Learning the Rules of Football Could Improve Your Relationship

Once again, football season is upon us, making seasonal widows out of many wives nationwide. Instead of hiding out this fall, though, have you ever considered learning about the sport and joining your husband on the sofa every Sunday afternoon? It could be fun! You could learn something new and possibly improve your marriage in the process.

The first thing you should know about professional (NFL) football is the timing. There are sixty minutes of game time that are broken up into four fifteen minute quarters. So why does your husband stay at the sports bar for three hours and say he's just watching the game? Well, because time-outs, a half-time break, penalties and game-delaying penalty reviews, commercial breaks and other reasons that stop the clock cause the game to run about three clock hours. So, ice up a case of beer and stock up on finger foods.

The second element of football basics is the team itself. Each team has eleven players on the field at a time, and each player has a different job to do. Each team consists of players that play on the offense or the defense. The team's offense is on the field when the team has possession of the football and is trying to score. The defense is the part of the team that tries to keep the other team from scoring. Special teams players are football players that are brought into the game for special plays, such as kicking the football to the other team in a change of possession or receiving the kicked football from the other team. Special teams players are also responsible for kicking field goals and extra points after touchdowns and for preventing the other team from scoring on these plays. Many of these players also play on either the offense or defense, but some are strictly special teams players.