Center/Long Snapper

[AbeBeta]

If I were a HS player hoping to make it to the NFL one day, regardless of what position I'm playing, I'd start volunteering to be the long snapper or placeholder ASAP! That's a skillset that will only make you more attractive compared to your competition trying to make a roster or practice squad.

If you really wanna show something, volunteer to do both.

 

[conner01]

Didn't Dale Hellestrae specialize in this?

He was also a center
But a true center who can deep snap is rare
Never understood why more don’t learn the skill in college
It has to be perfect accuracy and speed but you would think given enough practice more could learn the best job in football

 

[OmerV]

He was also a center
But a true center who can deep snap is rare
Never understood why more don’t learn the skill in college
It has to be perfect accuracy and speed but you would think given enough practice more could learn the best job in football

Hellestrae was technically a center, but he never started a single game at center for the Cowboys. Seems I recall a time or two he was thrust into action in an individual game, but that's it.

 

[Tangle_Foot]

Two different snaps entirely, can you imagine Andre Gurode being our long snapper.... let the nail biting begin

 

[conner01]

Hellestrae was technically a center, but he never started a single game at center for the Cowboys. Seems I recall a time or two he was thrust into action in an individual game, but that's it.

He was also huge compared to most today
Seems like most are LB sized now
Guess since you can’t hit them a smaller guy can cover more field

 

[OmerV]

He was also a center
But a true center who can deep snap is rare
Never understood why more don’t learn the skill in college
It has to be perfect accuracy and speed but you would think given enough practice more could learn the best job in football

I think it's the flexibility issue. A long snapper has to be able look through his legs at the target, and has to have the range of motion needed from that squatted, bent over position to send a perfect spiral on target and with sufficient velocity. That's generally much more difficult for a 310 lb man than a 250 lb one. Some NFL long snappers aren't even as big as 250.

 

[OmerV]

He was also huge compared to most today
Seems like most are LB sized now
Guess since you can’t hit them a smaller guy can cover more field

This is true. I just posted a comment about the size issue. Covering more field is an advantage for a smaller guy, but I don't think that's all of it by any means, as I mention in my post above.

 

[Swanny]

I know we have carried a long snapper on the team as long as I can remember. My question is this: Why isn't a center capable of being the long snapper? The center will often make long shotgun snaps.

Why isn't a long snapper capable of serving as a center? I notice long snappers are usually smaller than centers (in weight) and tend to be leaner in their build.

Can anyone enlighten me why one guy CANNOT do both? It would save a valuable roster spot on the 53 if you could combine them.

In order to be as good as a guy like L.P. you don't have time to waste at practice or in games blocking full time. Travis Frederick I'm sure could do it but not at the consistency that L.P. does it. You don't realize how valuable a long snapper is until you have a bad long snapper.

 

[DallasDW00ds0n]

I assume we dont want Fredrick running PRs down for tackles or taking on cheap blocks running down the field

 

[BlindFaith]

In order to be as good as a guy like L.P. you don't have time to waste at practice or in games blocking full time. Travis Frederick I'm sure could do it but not at the consistency that L.P. does it. You don't realize how valuable a long snapper is until you have a bad long snapper.

This.

It has nothing to do with body size. Except for the fact that guys who learn to long snap were never big enough or good enough to play a real position.

And long snapping is a real skill. Takes a lot of time to get to the level that it takes in the NFL. Players playing real positions don't have the time to practice it.

 

[TonyS]

The best answer: Because teams have tried it over the years and it failed.

You my friend get a gold, well let's make it a blue star, for that answer.

 

[scottsp]

Generally speaking, deep snapper is a not a job players volunteer for unless it’s the only way they can get on the field. Speaking from experience, this was how I forced my way into games my first two years of high school.

If I am an established professional at another position, I’m really not interested in DS. Guys would be forced to draw straws, I think. This clears a path, giving rise to the specialists who make their living this way.

Playing center and DS are two entirely different jobs. On FG, you’re spinning at about 8 yards, following through so that you’re hitting the holder in his numbers. For punts, it’s a bit of a deeper spin and snap so that you’re catching the punter’s radius at 14-15, with enough on it so the ball is kicked away within 1.5 seconds after movement of the snap.

A lot of the center’s responsibilities are in presnap. Delivery of the ball is basic execution, but it’s the easiest part of what they do, though only after they’ve practiced perfecting this with their battery mate. It’s presnap, delivery, and getting out to assignment.

DS is basically listening for checks, delivery, cover. About the only thing I liked about it was, by rule, I couldn’t be contacted. If only centers were so lucky, huh?

 

[xwalker]

Hellestrae was technically a center, but he never started a single game at center for the Cowboys. Seems I recall a time or two he was thrust into action in an individual game, but that's it.

He was a 4th round pick by the Bills as an OLineman.

He started some games at OG but was injured much of the time he was there.

I think he was the primary backup Center at one point for the Cowboys, then the backup-backup and eventually the only the long snapper.

Another issue with an OL being the LS is that the team is screwed if the LS gets injured which is much more likely if they play on the OL.

 

[links18]

It is a very specialized skill with a low margin for error. You kind of have to devote yourself to the job. A few bad snaps and you are getting cut for someone else, so you better have it down pretty well. Jeff Robinson did it in the 2000s for us and also doubled as a goal line TE, but I can't think of many others recently who had major duties other than long snapping. Remember that guy the Giants signed for for the playoff game against San Francisco, who botched the snap on the last play of the game? You don't want to be him.

 

[xwalker]

Generally speaking, deep snapper is a not a job players volunteer for unless it’s the only way they can get on the field. Speaking from experience, this was how I forced my way into games my first two years of high school.

If I am an established professional at another position, I’m really not interested in DS. Guys would be forced to draw straws, I think. This clears a path, giving rise to the specialists who make their living this way.

Playing center and DS are two entirely different jobs. On FG, you’re spinning at about 8 yards, following through so that you’re hitting the holder in his numbers. For punts, it’s a bit of a deeper spin and snap so that you’re catching the punter’s radius at 14-15, with enough on it so the ball is kicked away within 1.5 seconds after movement of the snap.

A lot of the center’s responsibilities are in presnap. Delivery of the ball is basic execution, but it’s the easiest part of what they do, though only after they’ve practiced perfecting this with their battery mate. It’s presnap, delivery, and getting out to assignment.

DS is basically listening for checks, delivery, cover. About the only thing I liked about it was, by rule, I couldn’t be contacted. If only centers were so lucky, huh?

Couldn't be contacted?

They changed the rule somewhat in the NFL a few years ago but previously defenders could crash into the LS with no limits as long as there was no leverage. The LS would have his legs in front of the OGs with no ability to step back. They were knocked on their backside often.

 

[CouchCoach]

The best answer: Because teams have tried it over the years and it failed.

Specific:
Shotgun snap - About 5 yards
Field Goal snap - 7.5 yards
Punt snap - 14 yards

At 5 yards a non-spiral can get to the QB with enough accuracy to work. A QB can adjust if the snap is not perfect.

On field goals, the margin for error is extremely small. Six inches off target is likely catastrophic; whereas 6 inches off target on shotgun would not be a big problem.

On punts, a snap that is 1 foot off target at 5 yards will be about 3 feet off target at 14 yards.

Other reasons
The snapper on punts must also be part of the punt coverage. When long snappers retire it is often this aspect that became a problem with age. A 260 pound long snapper is better in punt coverage than a 320 pound Center.

OLinemen don't have an incentive to be a good long snapper. Being a long snapper won't be the difference in winning a roster spot. If they are not good enough on OL to win a spot then they're really just a dedicated long snapper if that's what caused them to win a roster spot.

Team don't want their starting Center to play all of those special teams snaps.

Position players come and go. Teams prefer to have stability at long snapper, especially on field goals.

Practice time. It requires a lot of repetition to be a good long smapper.

Excellent response to the question, you took the words right off my keyboard. The only thing I would add is when they go out to bars and women ask them what they do, they get to say Snapper, Long Snapper like James Bond. Y'all ever see the women they get? Me neither but I can just imagine.

 

[CPanther95]

A good friend of mine had a 13 year NFL career as a long snapper. He could snap the ball like a QB throws the ball. Get him on a basketball court and he could snap footballs into the basket from anywhere on the court with a much higher accuracy than you'd believe. That's what you want and a center typically cannot do that.

... and he couldn't block for crap. He said his job was to snap and be a meat wall supported on both sides by the guards. Of course now, you can't even line up over the center, so its even less of an issue.

 

[scottsp]

Not to delve too far into minutiae, but perhaps it was that DS was left uncovered. A rule did protect us, but this was 30 years ago (UIL/Texas), though I digress.

I know I didn’t utter a peep in college when the request for DS volunteers came down

Couldn't be contacted?

They changed the rule somewhat in the NFL a few years ago but previously defenders could crash into the LS with no limits as long as there was no leverage. The LS would have his legs in front of the OGs with no ability to step back. They were knocked on their backside often.

 

[TheGoat73]

I know we have carried a long snapper on the team as long as I can remember. My question is this: Why isn't a center capable of being the long snapper? The center will often make long shotgun snaps.

Why isn't a long snapper capable of serving as a center? I notice long snappers are usually smaller than centers (in weight) and tend to be leaner in their build.

Can anyone enlighten me why one guy CANNOT do both? It would save a valuable roster spot on the 53 if you could combine them.

Don’t people say that he can snap a football into an open mailbox like every time ?

 

[Maxmadden]

Just check out L.P.'s career stats. He is worth every penny Jerry pays him.

How many games come down to an extra point or a field goal? He gets paid millions of dollars because he is a specialist and he is very good at it.

You just pay him a couple of million dollars so you don't have to worry about it. It's like algebra, you have a known quantity so that the rest of the equation is easy to figure out. I couldn't pick LP out of a lineup.