Subject: 3 Tips for Coaching Offensive Linemen
Date: September 7, 2026
What better topic for a Labor Day email than the kids who put in the most work - your Offensive Linemen.
I love ‘em. I’m known as a defensive guy. But there is nothing more fun than working with the big fellas.
They get no credit. No one in the stands understands what they do. Heck, most coaches don’t really get it.
The Offensive Line is a special little club. They should all get decoder rings.
As the Offensive Line Coach, you have a special job. You are responsible for coaching up and supporting the most under-appreciated group on the team.
Don’t take that for granted.
This week on The Football Coaching Podcast, we talked about the most important Offensive Line Drills. What you should be doing… and what you need to stop doing.
Listen or Watch the Offensive Line Drills podcast episode >>
Here’s 3 big tips for coaching those 5 big guys:
- Coach the 1-on-1 game. You do not need fancy equipment and you probably should not use it at all. Drills focus on what you want to see on the field. There are no sleds on the field. No boards. No bags. No ropes. No chutes.
- Focus on coaching the first 2 steps. Put more emphasis on getting these right than anything else. If you take the right first two steps, and get the timing right on the play, even your undersized, overmatched little lineman can win the block.
- Communicate on every play. Work communication into your drills. Ask questions, too. Offensive Linemen should always be talking. Never do anything without talking. You want your linemen to learn to solve problems on the field without you.
My latest coaching manual released last week, bundled with the audiobook version. It’s called Coach Simple, Volume 1: The Lost Letters. The manual collects the first year of my Coach Simple print newsletter than shipped exclusively to JDFB Premium Coaching Systems members.
Those newsletters have never been available anywhere else. Until now. And there’s a full 4,500-word instructional deep dive on how to choose the right drills and coach those drills to translate to the field:
Order the Coach Simple Newsletter manual >>
~ Joe Daniel
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