A walkthrough in football is a light practice typically done the day before a game. In most instances, a walkthrough is done by the away team after they show up at a new stadium. This type of practice does not involve any contact and is more of a mental exercise than physical.
What Is The Purpose Of A Walkthrough?
The two main reasons teams conduct walkthroughs before a game is to familarize themselves with the stadium and prepare their plays for the game.
Getting To Know The Stadium
One of the main reasons that teams conduct walkthrough practices is so the players and staff can get a feel for the stadium. When playing in NFL or college football you travel all over the country often playing in stadiums for the first time.
Small factors like the wind or the sun can have large effects on the game. These are the sorts of things you want to get a feel for before you step out onto the field.
Something as simple as knowing how the wind will affect kicks from certain locations. Or the sun facing your bench for the second half can be helpful for game planning.
To give themselves a fair shot in a new stadium the away team almost always conduct walk throughs to help even out the playing field in terms of stadium knowledge.
Preparing Their Plays
The other beneficial portion of a walkthrough is preparing your plays. In this part of the practice players will literally walk through their plays at half speed in order to keep them fresh in their minds.
Oftentimes these walkthroughs will focus on this portion of the practice if there is a more unusual game plan.
For example, say you are playing a team with a mobile quarterback that likes to carry the ball. In this situation, you may want to simulate some of the opponent’s quarterback run plays. This will allow your defense to be ready to counter them when the time comes.
The same also goes for the offense. Say you are attempting plays that you do not often run in order to beat a difficult defense. These more obscure football plays are going to be practiced in the walkthrough to allow the players to become more familiar.
It will also allow them a chance to practice these plays on the opponent’s field. This will ensure they have the correct positioning when it comes time to play.
Concluding Thougths
All in all a walkthrough can be considered a light practice that prepares the players mentally for a game in a opponents stadium. If you have any more questions regarding the topic of walk throughs please feel free to reach out.
