The offensive line
What it is
The five interior blockers — centre, two guards, two tackles — who are ineligible receivers and who decide whether any other call works.
Why it matters
The offensive line is the only unit in football graded almost entirely on cohesion rather than on individual wins: five men executing five slightly different assignments in unison, where one man's timing error opens a gap that had nothing to do with him. That is why identification calls matter more than talent at this position group, and why the centre's declaration of the front is the first thing that happens on most plays.
Also called
Programs call this OL, the line, the five, up front or hogs. The Coach answers to any of them.
Related
This entry is authored, not generated. It is one of 205 in the index that the AI-ssistant Coach retrieves from, and that Film Study tags clips against.