Go Deeper: Quarterback


Book Description

Pat Kirwan’s best-selling Take Your Eye Off the Ball was a football fan’s undergraduate education. The Go Deeper series of books from Pat and Real Football Network is a master’s class in understanding the finer points of playing particular positions. We launch the series, of course, with the most important position in sports: quarterback.Go Deeper: Quarterback includes chapters on:• Understanding the utility of mobility (dispelling the myth of the dual-threat quarterback)• The most important tools and traits required to play the position• A look at the mechanics of throwing the football• How to read a defense pre- and post-snap and call plays designed to beat a particular coverage• How offenses evolve to maximize a quarterback’s matchups • Situational execution (two-minute drills, red zone)• How teams need to address all quarterbacks on the roster and the strategy behind finding the appropriate backupThe book also includes exclusive play diagrams that will help fans understand their favorite game like never before!




Sunday Morning Quarterback


Book Description

An in-depth and surprising look at the game, Sunday Morning Quarterback will dramatically change the way you watch football. You've heard all the football clichés: "Their offense is too predictable," or "They've got to win the turnover battle," or "They didn't make any halftime adjustments." Perhaps you've heard them so often that you've come to see them as obvious truths. Phil Simms, after an illustrious career as a Super Bowl-winning quarterback and a broadcaster, is here to tell you that these—and many other blanket statements taken as gospel—are all myths, and whoever says them has no idea of what they're talking about. Drilling deep into the core of football, Simms also shows the hidden signs that players look for that can determine the outcome of a game. Whether it's discovering how a linebacker positions his feet before he blitzes or how to react if the safety is eight or nine yards from the line of scrimmage, knowing these "dirty little secrets" gives players and their coaches a tremendous advantage. In addition, Simms shares his insights into the enormous challenges coaches face in today's game, evaluating the top coaches and what makes them successful. He takes a look at some of the greatest players he's played with and against, and what he misses most about the game—waking up Monday mornings feeling beat up and sore. He looks at the next generation of football players—his son, Tampa Bay's Chris Simms, among them. Through it all, Simms shares stories from his playing days with Bill Parcells and the New York Giants, and the inside access he's had as an announcer for one of the top NFL broadcasting teams in football. Fun and lively, Sunday Morning Quarterback should be required reading for anyone who loves football.




Goin' Deep


Book Description

"Put aside the fact that it ended my playing career, punched holes in my memory and put life as I knew it on indefinite hold, it wasn't that tough a hit." Thus begins Goin' Deep, Matt Dunigan's gritty, often startling memoir of his 14-year journey as a Canadian Football League quarterback, a career brought to a shattering halt on an afternoon in Hamilton in 1996 in a game he still cannot remember. It is a story that takes readers where football fans cannot go--down the stadium runway into the dressing rooms--where injury is a fact of life, injections can put agony on temporary hold, and the tough-minded live by the credo that "Pain is mind over matter. If you don't mind the pain, it doesn't matter." But Goin' Deep is more than a football story. The concussion suffered in that game against the BC Lions marked the end of Dunigan's brilliant Hall of Fame career in the no-quarter world of professional football--and the beginning of another journey still in progress, where some days start third-and-long and memories can be shrouded in a drifting, frustrating fog that may or may not clear. "You play the hand you're dealt," he says. "There are good days and bad days. Sometimes putting sentences together can be a struggle. Some days Kathy will say 'Remember when such-and-such,' and I can't. But these are my cards, and I'll play 'em." The way he's played and continues to play them as a TSN football CFL analyst makes Goin' Deep a riveting, heart-warming read.




Take Your Eye Off the Ball 2.0


Book Description

Renowned NFL analysts' tips to make football more accessible, colorful, and compelling than ever before More and more football fans are watching the NFL each week, but many of them don't know exactly what they should be watching. What does the offense's formation tell you about the play that's about to be run? When a quarterback throws a pass toward the sideline and the wide receiver cuts inside, which player is to blame? Why does a defensive end look like a Hall of Famer one week and a candidate for the practice squad the next? These questions and more are addressed in Take Your Eye Off the Ball 2.0, a book that takes readers deep inside the perpetual chess match between offense and defense. This book provides clear and simple explanations to the intricacies and nuances that affect the outcomes of every NFL game. This updated edition contains recent innovations from the 2015 NFL season.




QB 1


Book Description

From #1 New York Times bestselling author of TRAVEL TEAM, HEAT, and MILLION-DOLLAR THROW comes a cheer-worthy, family-friendly football novel set amid the Friday Night Lights world of Texas high school football Jake Cullen is a freshman quarterback playing high school football in Texas, the high-pressure land of Friday Night Lights. He is also the brother of Wyatt Cullen, who quarterbacked his team to the Texas State Championship last season--not to mention the son of former NFL quarterback and local legend, Troy Cullen. To be a Cullen in Texas is to be football royalty . . . which leaves 14-year-old Jake in a Texas-sized shadow. Being a good teammate comes naturally to Jake; being a winner and a celebrity does not. Jake may be a Cullen, and he may play quarterback, but he is not his brother or his father. He's just like every other kid: fighting for every ounce of respect, awkward around a pretty girl, in awe of his famous family, and desparate to simultaneously blend in and cast his own shadow. Inspired by the real-life Manning family of quarterbacks and set amid the football-crazy culture of Texas, QB 1 is a coming-of-age story perfect for the fan of MILLION-DOLLAR THROW and HEAT.




Go Deep


Book Description




Top Prospect


Book Description

Travis Gardner lives to play quarterback. He's a standout QB by middle school, and he's prepared to put everything he has into the game. Then Gainesville University's head coach makes Travis a promise: Travis will have a place on the team, and a scholarship to go with it. He just has to get through high school first. As Travis starts ninth grade, he'll have to earn his teammates' trust and dodge opponents aiming to sack the star quarterback. But his biggest challenge might be staying focused in the face of sudden fame. Because now the pressure is on, and Travis has to prove himself with every pass. "Travis' love for the game . . . seems absolutely authentic. This engaging read will resonate with middle schoolers, especially aspiring athletes."—Booklist




The Quarterback Whisperer


Book Description

What is an elite NFL QB and what separates that player from the others? One answer is the coach they share. In the recent history of the biggest game on earth, one man is the common thread that connects several of the very best in the sport: Peyton Manning; Ben Roethlisberger; Andrew Luck; and the resurgent Carson Palmer. That coach is Bruce Arians. A larger than life visionary who trained under the tutelage of Bear Bryant, Arians has had a major impact on the development and success of each of these players. For proof beyond the stats, go to the sources. "Bruce is gonna love you when you need some loving, but he's gonna jump on you when you're not doing right." -- Peyton Manning "He coaches the way players want to be coached." -- Ben Roethlisberger "He made players comfortable around him and let everybody have their own personality. He didn't force anybody to be someone they weren't. It may sound a little corny or cheesy, but there's merit to that. I felt comfortable being myself and I felt he had my back." -- Andrew Luck "We're a resilient group. It trickles down from the head coach. I think good teams, really good teams, and hopefully great teams take on their coach's mentality. I think that's what B.A. brings . . . " -- Carson Palmer Known around the game as the 'quarterback whisperer', Arians has an uncanny ability to both personally connect with his quarterbacks and to locate what the individual triggers are for that player to succeed. No two quarterbacks are the same. And yet with Arians they always share success. In this book Arians will explain how he does it.




Coaching Canadian Football


Book Description

Being a successful football coach require proficiency in the Xs and Os and the techniques and tactics of the game. It also requires the ability to manage off-the-field tasks critical to a well-organized, high-performing program. With Coaching Canadian Football, you'll expand your knowledge of every aspect of coaching and emerge as a more complete and effective coach. Written by coaches for coaches, Coaching Canadian Football represents the collective knowledge and experience of Canadian football's most respected and renowned coaches, as selected by Football Canada. Each coach shares personal insights, strategies, and advice, addressing all facets of the 12-man game. You'll learn the inner workings of leadership and how to establish and convey your coaching philosophy. Chapters covering offense, defense, and special teams provide strategies and tactics for the running, passing, and kicking games on both sides of the ball. You'll also find chapters addressing player safety, play calling, clock management, mental preparation, player evaluation, and opponent scouting. In addition, case studies and coaches' personal perspectives demonstrate how to build and maintain successful high school and postsecondary programs. Featuring content that aligns with Football Canada's long-term athlete development model and reflects National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) guidelines, Coaching Canadian Football will make you a better coach by connecting you with innovative coaches and enduring principles that have shaped the game.




Going Deep


Book Description

How Wideouts Became the NFL's Standouts From the time Cris Carter started his career as a supplemental draft pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in 1987 to his retirement in 2002, the position of wide receiver exploded in the NFL. Receivers went from being quiet and classy to being known for their electric play, off-the-field antics, and -- in some cases -- over-the-top personalities. In Going Deep, Carter and ESPN journalist Jeffri Chadiha chronicle the rise of the wide receiver and explain how it became the most complex, compelling, and talked-about position in all of professional sports. Using stories from his own career to offer unprecedented insight into the position, Carter explains the players' unique personalities, how their minds work, and why teams need to understand exactly what they're dealing with when it comes to their wideouts -- the NFL's newest superstars. Told through Carter's opinionated voice, Going Deep covers all the important moments and people -- from Michael Irvin, Jerry Rice, and Keyshawn Johnson to Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Chad Johnson -- who have contributed to this revolution. He also tells stories readers have never heard about their favorite players, shares theories about the position that only get discussed in front offices and locker rooms, and offers revealing explanations on what these players mean to the league today, as well as why the NFL can't go forward without them. "One of the most riveting, insightful football books I've ever read. This book takes you inside the huddle, along the sidelines, and deep into the secret world that is the NFL. Breathtaking work." -- Jeff Pearlman, New York Times bestselling author of Boys Will Be Boys and The Bad Guys Won "No one understands wide receivers better than Cris Carter, and I loved his book. If you want to understand how we think, and hear inside stories about the most over-the-top athletes in sports, read Going Deep." -- Jerry Rice, Hall of Fame wide receiver "I am so glad someone got Cris Carter to sit down and describe what makes receivers tick. (It's deeper than you think.) You'll get to the last page of this book and say, 'I really learned a lot here--and the pages flew by.' " -- Peter King, senior writer, Sports Illustrated; author of Monday Morning Quarterback; and two-time National Sportswriter of the Year