A 4-yard gain can turn into a 50-yard touchdown if a stiff arm is properly used.
In fact, the stiff arm is one of the offensive player's most valuable weapons. If properly taught, it can effectively prevent a tackler from getting anywhere near the ball-carrier and bringing him down.
To start teaching the stiff arm to youth football players, use a bag or tackling dummy to practice on. When runners show they have mastered the mechanics of the stiff arm, replace the bag with a live tackler and run the drill with full contact or thud mode.
Here is the diagram of a drill provided by the Youth Football Coaches Association that is great at teaching stiff arms in practice. All you need is two cones, a tackler and a ball-carrier to work on proper stiff arms:
Depending on what part of the body the tackler has exposed to the runner, the ideal aiming ponts for the stiff arm are:
- Top of the helmet (not the facemask)
- Top of the shoulder plate
- Chest plate
For a printable .pdf of this drill and others, visit the YFBCA website.