What is the Defensive Line?

Typical Football Defensive Lineup

Okay ladies, let me start with this: I have been watching football for 2+ decades, and until I started to read up on the Defensive Line, I had zero idea who’s who and what’s what. So, let’s learn together!
In general there are 3 layers of defensive players
1. Defensive Linemen (first layer with 6 men)
2. Linebackers (second layer with 3 men)
3. The Secondary (it’s called the “secondary” but it’s the 3rd row with 2 men, I know, it’s meant to confuse us)

The primary function of the Defensive Line is to stop the Offense; stop the running game, stop the throwing game and if possible, strip the ball away from the Offense resulting in an interception and getting the ball back for their team.
Here is the breakdown of positions:
LB= Linebacker
DE= Defensive End
DT= Defensive Tackle
CB= Corner Back
S= Safety

Now, these guys are generally the biggest men on the field. HUGE scary men! They rip and roar their way towards the Quarterback, throw down a Receiver like a sack of potatoes, and do a “Lights Out” dance on top of it. There is a fantastic Nike commercial by the Creative Artist Agency on youtube featuring Shawne Merriman of the San Diego Chargers. You get the idea of how tough these guys are. The “Lights Out” dance is when a Defensive player hits an Offensive player so hard you can hear and feel it and you cringe!
Look for a deeper breakdown of all of the Defensive Player positions from the 101 Women soon! Till then you can check out the NFL’s football basics and if you have little ones at home who want to learn the game the NFL has a Muppet puppet video featuring Coach Zuff (that’s the puppet) that breaks down the player positions.