Coaching Special Teams

By 4Football Staff · October 7, 2026 · 10 min read

A practical guide to coaching the kicking game: six units, how to split practice time, teaching coverage lanes and protection, choosing personnel and keeping players safe.

Every coach has lived some version of this Friday. The offense moves the ball, the defense forces a stop, and then the game turns on thirty seconds of football that almost nobody practiced enough: a punt that sails out of bounds at the wrong spot, a kickoff return that stalls at the 15, a snap that arrives a half step late and ruins a field goal try. The players who lost the field position were not bad players. They were players on a unit that was treated as an afterthought during the week.

Special teams are the part of the game most often coached by whoever has a free minute. That is a mistake, because the kicking game decides field position on every possession, produces some of the most dramatic swing plays in the sport, and carries real injury risk when it is taught carelessly. This guide covers how to organize the units, how to divide practice time, how to teach the core techniques, and how to choose and develop the people who play on them.

Six units, not one

"Special teams" is really a set of separate teams, each with its own personnel, rules and problems. Treating them as one period called "special teams" is the first thing to fix.

Each unit needs a clear list of assignments, a set of calls or signals, and a person responsible for coaching it. At the NFL and in major college programs, one coach usually holds the title of special teams coordinator and works with position coaches who lead individual units. At a high school or youth program, one assistant may handle all six, or the head coach may split them among several people. Whatever the structure, a name should be attached to every unit.

Spend practice time on purpose

Because the kicking game involves many players performing short, specific tasks, it rewards efficient practice more than almost any other phase. The common failure is spending the last few minutes of an offense and defense period on "special teams" and hoping for the best.

A more reliable approach is to schedule special teams in the practice plan the same way you schedule team offense. Many staffs give each unit a rotating focus during the week, so that kickoff and kickoff return might be the main emphasis early in the week, punt and punt return in the middle, and field goal work later, with a short review of all of them before the game. The precise split depends on your opponent's tendencies and your own weaknesses, and on the practice time your league or state association allows. For a broader look at planning, see the guide on building a practice plan.

Two practical ideas help:

• Use individual periods. The kicker, punter, long snapper and holder can work during the portion of practice when other players are doing position drills, so the whole squad does not wait on them.
• Rehearse the situations. A coach can set up "game-ending field goal" or "backed up on the goal line, need a punt" as scripted reps with real pressure, such as a clock running or a consequence for the loser.

The operation: snap, hold, kick

The field goal and punt units depend on a chain of events that has to happen on a tight schedule. For a field goal or extra point, the long snapper delivers the ball to the holder, who catches and places it, and the kicker approaches and strikes it. Coaches time this sequence with a stopwatch and look for consistency as much as speed. For a punt, the snap goes back to the punter, who catches it, takes his steps and kicks, and coaches commonly aim for a snap-to-kick time of about two seconds. If your times vary widely, the problem is probably the snap or the steps and not the kick itself.

A few coaching points that apply at nearly every level:

1. The snap comes first. A snap that is accurate but slow is better than one that is fast but off target. Long snappers should work on both accuracy and velocity as separate goals.
2. The holder's job is to help the kicker. Consistent hand position, laces turned away, the ball tilted at the angle the kicker prefers, and a calm demeanor matter more than speed.
3. The kicker's approach is a repeatable routine. Count the steps, mark the starting point, and repeat it every time.

Technique details for individual specialists are covered in their own guides, including snapping technique and the kicker and punter profiles. For a team-level coach, the main task is to make sure the pieces fit and that nobody practices alone for so long that he stops working with the rest of the unit.

Coverage: lanes and discipline

Kickoff and punt coverage both depend on the same idea: every player has a lane, and the lanes together should leave the returner no seam. The coach's job is to teach the players to run fast and stay in their lanes at the same time, which is harder than it sounds because the instinct is to chase the ball.

Common coverage principles:

• Lanes are assigned and numbered or named. Players should know theirs from the first day.
• Run under control when approaching the returner. The last few steps are for breaking down and keeping a wide base, not for a full-speed collision.
• Leave a "safety" or a contain player. Someone must stay back or outside to prevent a long return if the first wave misses.
• Keep the returner in front of you. Overrunning the play is how a coverage unit gives up a long return.

Drills that help include a lane drill without a ball, in which the coverage unit runs the lanes while a coach acts as the returner and calls out who left their lane, and a "hat on the ball" drill, in which each player works on breaking down and getting a hat on the ball carrier at a controlled speed. For the kickoff itself, rules have changed more than once, so teach from the current rule book of your level. The guide to kickoff rules and how they have changed explains why you should always check the latest version.

Return units: catching, blocking and decisions

On the return side, the team has to protect the ball, create space and avoid penalties. Teaching a return begins with the returner, who needs three skills: a secure catch, a quick decision about whether to return, fair catch or let the ball go, and a plan for the first three steps.

The blockers follow a scheme. Most return schemes are some variation on wedge, wall or lane-based blocking. At many levels, rules limit how and when blockers can contact coverage players, so the scheme must be built inside the rules that apply. The guide to punt return schemes explains the main patterns.

The coaching emphasis is usually on three things:

• Ball security over big plays. A returner who fumbles has cost the team more than a returner who simply fair catches would have.
• Penalty avoidance. A block in the back or an illegal block can erase a good return. Teach players where their hands go and when they must not block.
• Communication. The returner needs to hear "fair catch," "peter," "return" or whatever calls your team uses, and the calls must be rehearsed.

Protection and blocking the kicks

A punt or field goal protection scheme assigns every blocker a responsibility, and the unit has to understand who covers whom if the defense shows an unusual alignment. Many punt units use a combination of a "shield" in front of the punter and players who release to cover. Field goal units usually use a tight line with wings on the ends, and the rules limit how much blocking can occur. The details are explained in the guide to field goal protection and blocking.

For the unit trying to block the kick, the coaching points are discipline and timing. The common problems are lining up offside, running into or roughing the kicker, and jumping at the wrong time. A blocked kick is a high-reward play with a significant penalty risk, so many staffs decide which situations justify the risk, such as the end of a half, and which do not.

Choose personnel with a plan

The best special teams units are rarely made up of the players the staff would name as the best athletes. They are made up of players who understand their job and are willing to do it at full speed in a role that gets less attention. A few ideas for assigning players:

• Look for speed, toughness and discipline. A fast player who cannot stay in a lane is less useful than a slightly slower player who can.
• Do not overload starters. On a team with limited depth, a starter may have to play several units. Decide which ones matter most and protect the player's energy.
• Give backups a purpose. Special teams is often the way younger players earn playing time. Say so, and recognize it publicly.
• Match the role to the body. Gunners and coverage players generally need speed and good tackling, while blockers on protection units need size and technique.

The point is not that special teams should be a place to hide weak players. It is that the unit should be built as deliberately as the offense.

Teaching the calls and signals

Special teams involve more calls than most coaches expect: formations, alignments, who is the returner, who is the contain player, what to do on a fake. Keep the system small enough for your players to learn. A good rule is to use one word or signal per idea and to practice them in the walk-through before they are used at full speed.

Use consistent signals from the sideline. If your team uses hand signs, assign one coach to give them and one to check that the unit responded correctly. At levels where helmet communication is not allowed or is limited, the signals have to work without any technology. Rules about electronic equipment on the sideline vary by level and state, so confirm what your association allows. The guide to game day communication discusses how teams handle this.

Fakes and gadgets

Fake punts and trick plays attract attention because they are fun and sometimes decisive. They are worth practicing only if the base unit is sound. A fake succeeds when the defense is surprised and the offense executes cleanly, which depends on the same fundamentals as a regular kick. Before adding one, ask whether the players can catch, snap and block correctly in the base version, and whether the risk fits the game situation. The article on fake punts and trick plays explains the decision.

Safety on the kicking game

Kickoffs and punts involve players running at full speed toward each other, which is why rules and practice habits matter. Some points for every coach:

• Teach angles and body control. Collisions are more dangerous when players are out of control.
• Never allow head-down contact. The rules at every level prohibit it, and it should be corrected immediately.
• Follow the contact limits. Leagues and state associations set rules for how much full-speed contact can occur in practice. Use controlled drills for most coverage work.
• Respect the rules protecting kickers, punters and returners. The kicker, the holder and a player attempting a fair catch have protections that vary by level, so teach them from the current rule book.
• Know the concussion protocol. Any player who shows signs of a head injury comes out and is evaluated by a qualified medical professional, as your league and state require.

Evaluating the work

Special teams performance can feel random, but it can be measured. Keep simple records for each unit: the snap-to-kick times, how many kicks were put where you intended, how many covering players were in their lanes on film, how many penalties occurred, and how often returners made good decisions. Review these in a short special teams meeting each week so the players see the work they do as part of the game plan and not as a footnote. The schedule, scores and team pages are useful for tracking which opponents have the strongest kicking game before you plan the week.

The short version

• Treat special teams as six separate units with named coaches, clear assignments and scheduled practice time.
• Time the operation and aim for consistency: the snap comes first, the hold helps the kicker, and the kick follows a repeatable routine.
• Teach coverage lanes and discipline, and keep the contain player back.
• On returns, ball security and penalty avoidance matter more than the big play.
• Choose personnel for speed, discipline and willingness, and use special teams as a way for younger players to earn a role.
• Check your level's current kickoff and contact rules before each season.