Football Agility Drills With Cones

Even during the off season, the football players at Penn State---the school that scores consistently among the top 10 in the nation in defense since 2004---practices agility drills at least twice per week. The ability to change direction at fast speeds and a moment's notice is crucial to all players who intend to own the football field. There are a number of agility drills that football players can use to improve their reaction time and reflexes, giving them an edge on the field.

  1. X Drill

    • For the X drill, you will need five cones. Place four of them in a square pattern, with sides each five yards long. Place the fifth cone in the center of the square.

      Players should start at the cone that makes the lower-left-hand point of the X and sprint to the center cone. From the center cone, make a quick cut to head toward the cone at the top left of the X. From there, sprint across to the top right of the X, and then back to the center. Finally, sprint from the center to touch the remaining cone at bottom right, and then sprint back to your starting cone.

      Moving from cone-to-cone at so fast a pace will increase a player's ability to turn in mid-sprint and to shift direction quickly. You can change the exercise from sprinting to backpedaling and side-shuffling, or any combination of the three movements, to keep players focused and using different parts of their bodies. Calling out the commands when the players are already moving can help to improve their reactions to changing situations like they will see on the field.

    5-10-5 Drill

    • Lay three cones on the field, each five yards apart in a relatively straight line. The player should begin at the center cone and sprint to one of the side cones. He must touch that cone, and then abruptly shift direction and sprint to the far cone, now 10 yards away. Again he must touch the cone, and then quickly shift and sprint back to touch the middle cone. This relatively simple cone drill will have the players changing position and direction quickly, which is a vital component of agility on the field when the ball can change hands and direction at any time.

      Much like the X drill, you can incorporate a number of running techniques like backpedaling into this drill. Have players run with one technique, or change the technique in the middle of the drill, to keep the player on his toes and paying attention to everything around him.

    Zig-Zag Drill

    • The zig-zag drill will have football players literally turning on a dime and pushing their physical abilities to the limit.

      Set up four cones in a straight line, each seven yards apart. In between each pair of cones, set up a cone seven yards to one side of the line, so that you now have two separate lines: one with four cones and one with three. Players must navigate the zig-zag pattern formed by these cones and a sprint. Each player must pass around each cone and then abruptly turn and sprint to the next cone in the pattern. Be sure each player rounds each cone and doesn't skip any within the pattern.

      This drill can also be performed at a shuffle or backpedal. Quick running and sudden changes of direction will increase a player's agility.