I will be continuing to add to this post leading up to the draft. If you have any suggestions or questions about a word or phrase not listed here, post it and I’ll try to find out or point you in the right direction. If you have any corrections, I’m open to acknowledging those as well. 1 or 0 technique: 3-4 nose tackle

3 technique: 4-3 defensive tackle

40 time: Players are timed running 40 yards. Anything under 4.2 seconds is something that’s more than human…

5 technique: 3-4 defensive end

Anchor: the ability of a player to hold his ground and not get pushed around. Usually refers to linemen.

Best available player (BAP): Before the draft, teams put together a draft board that ranks players. Whenever it’s their time to pick, instead of picking the player who fills a position of need, they take the top player on their board, who  may or may not fill a need.

Body-catcher: a player who catches the ball by allowing it to come into his body rather than catching it with his hands.

 

 

Bubble: a players butt. A good bubble (when referring to a lineman) is when it’s big and not skinny, meaning they have good strength and bulk in the lower half of their body, which in turn means that he’s going to be able to hold his ground better. Obviously this definition needs the #nohomo tag. If you want to see a different kind of bubble butt, click to see a nice youtube clip.

bust: A player who is drafted in the 1st round, but after 3 years or less in the league, isn’t starting or playing up to potential that 1st round picks are expected to.
Can you use it in a sentence, please?: JaMarcus Russell can have a lot more Skittles and purple drank now that he’s officially a NFL bust.

Clean the pocket: When an offensive lineman isn’t blocking anybody, he helps out another blocker, usually knocking down an opponent who’s being blocked.

Click and close: When a defensive back has to stop backpedaling, drive forward off of his back foot, and go get the football in front of him.

DPR: Designated pass rusher. A player who exclusively is brought in to be a pass rusher.

Draft trade value chart: A numeric chart that matches each pick in the draft with a number value. It’s used to measure how fair a trade of draft picks is. Many teams’ trade value charts differ, so that’s why we see some people just disregard it all together when it’s referred to. Here’s a link to an example.

Gait: I had never heard of this word before I started to read scouting reports. It means the way a person runs.

heavy hands: It doesn’t mean that the player has slow hands that drag on the ground, it just means that they are able to dish out a hard punch with their hands.

kick slide: It’s an offensive tackle’s first move after the ball is snapped. In order to block a rusher coming off the edge, the offensive tackle’s outside leg kicks out in order to get out on the edge in front of rusher and be able to block him. A tackle must be athletic and quick enough to get out there in time, or else the rusher will be able to easily get past him to quarterback.

motor: the amount of effort and persistence put forth by a player on the field.

need drafting: Picking a player who fills a need. This draft philosophy is dangerous because you allow better players to stay on the board for other teams to take.

Premium position(s): These are the positions that are the hardest to find elite players at and are the most important to NFL teams. The typical positions are quarterback, left tackle, defensive end, and cornerback, but it’s open to interpretation by any general manager.

pro ready: A player that is ready to play in an NFL system right now. Typically, the player has played in a pro-style offense in college. However, it does not necessarily mean that player is better than a player who’s coming from a college system, like a spread offense.
Can you use it in a sentence, please?: Jimmy Clausen was the most “pro ready” quarterback in the 2010 draft, but we all saw how that turned out.

Sam linebacker: aka strong-side linebacker. Linebacker that lines up against the offense on the side of the formation that has the tight end. Sam and strong both start with an S.

sand in the pants: bulk and strength in the lower half of a player’s body.

Short-armed: Short arms. Preferable arm length is 32+ inches for offensive and defensive linemen.

stiff in the hips: Especially when talking about defensive backs, it’s when a player doesn’t have the ability to change directions or flip hips easily.

Straight line speed: The speed of a player running straight ahead, obviously.

Strong-side linebacker: Linebacker that lines up against the offense on the side of the formation that has the tight end.

‘tweener: Not mobile enough to to play one position, but not big enough to play another. Usually describing a DE/OLB.
Can you use it in a sentence, please? In the 2010 NFL draft, Brandon Graham was thought to have been a ‘tweener, because his body size and speed weren’t quite the most desirable for an outside linebacker, but he was a bit undersized to play defensive end, too.

Violent hands: Another way to describe the hand punch into a blocker’s chest. You want the punch to be fast, without sliding the elbows back first, and to move the blocker to left or right in order to beat the block.

Weakside linebacker: The linebacker that lines up on the opposite side of the offense from where the tight end is.

Will linebacker: aka weakside linebacker. The linebacker that lines up on the opposite side of the offense from where the tight end is. Both terms start with the same letter: W.

Wonderlic Test: an IQ test given to draft prospects.
Can you use it in a sentence, please?: The Wonderlic Test tests prospects intelligence by having them answer 50 questions in 12 minutes
I took one (and totally got blindsided) during a job interview. I think I scored the same as Vince Young did.