Wildcat formation (American Football Strategy)

Wildcat formation describes a formation for the offense in football in which the ball is snapped not to the quarterback but directly to a player of another position lined up at the quarterback position (in most systems, this is a running back, but some playbooks have the wide receiver, fullback, or tight end taking the snap). The Wildcat features an unbalanced offensive line and looks to the defense like a sweep behind zone blocking. A player moves across the formation prior to the snap. However, once this player crosses the position of the running back who will receive the snap, the play develops unlike the sweep.

Defending against the Wildcat is straightforward, but the defense does not always identify that a play will use the Wildcat, and preparing to defend against it may take practice time away from other preparation. If a defense interprets the Wildcat as a regular sweep play to one side, it may reduce its defense of the weak side and make it easier for the running back to advance the ball by running to that side.

The Wildcat is a gambit rather than an overall offensive philosophy. It can be a part of many offenses. For example, a spread-option offense might use the Wildcat formation to keep the defense guessing, or a West Coast offense may use the power-I formation to threaten a powerful run attack.

SPORTS

American Football

Game play in American football consists of a series of downs, individual plays of short duration, outside of which the ball is dead or not in play. These can be plays from scrimmage – passes, runs, punts, or field goal attempts (from either a place kick or a drop kick) – or free kicks such as kickoffs and fair catch kicks. Substitutions can be made between downs, which allows for a great deal of specialization as coaches choose the players best suited for each particular situation. During a play, each team should have no more than 11 players on the field, and each of them has specific tasks assigned for that specific play.