There’s holding on every play in the NFL. A flag might not be thrown every time, but linemen are constantly holding defenders in pass protection and the run game.
The trick is to legally grab hold of the defender’s frame and block them that way. Once your hands get outside the chest plate and around the body, a flag is bound to be thrown.
Rams right tackle Rob Havenstein spent more than a decade in the NFL blocking some of the best pass rushers in football, and he broke down the technique linemen use to hold without holding.
“There’s always a little bit of space up in there where you can kind of fish your hands up and in and get a good hold, but it’s inside the chest, not outside on the back,” he said.
This isn’t anything revolutionary or new, but it’s interesting to hear how Havenstein describes the skill of holding defenders legally. Of course, these holds don’t always go uncalled, but more often than not, linemen get away with grabbing the defender’s chest plate.
“I’m always trying to hit that either bicep and slide my hand into it, or hit the chest plate and rotate my wrist back around to get a good grab,” he said.
Defenders work on their hand usage for this exact reason, trying to fight off offensive linemen who attempt to grab their pads. Jared Verse talked about how good Trent Williams is at grabbing hold and not letting go, doing so legally without being called for holding. He experienced that firsthand as a rookie when Williams used his vice grips to lock down Verse and stonewall him.
Some linemen are better at it than others, but it’s part of every player’s repertoire.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rob Havenstein explains how linemen hold without actually holding
Reporting by Cameron DaSilva, Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
