Help with quarterback skills...Serious answers only please

Question

I am in the U.S. Army and my unit has a flag football team. We take great pride in being post champs year in and year out. I was the back-up QB, but our starter PCS'ed to another base and I'm expected to fill his shoes. I have great vision, amazing accuracy, NFL level mechanics, a split second release, and near perfect timing on my throws. Problem is, my arm strength is sub par. I am a small guy (5'4) but although I can see over the line suprisingly well, I can only throw 30-35 yards max. I can zip it about 15-20 yards but the velocity severely decreases after that. I can throw a dead on accurate floater but I want to bullet it 30-40 yards instead of having to float it, minimizing the risk of being picked off. The field we play on is a 50 yard field and I want to throw the entire length with ease or at least be able to zip it a good 30 yards. How can I improve my throwing distance and the velocity on my throws? Excercises? Weight lifting excercises? Anything to improve my distance and velocity. Please help! Serious anwers only please.

Answer 1

I would suggest you get together with your receivers and practice the longer throws with them. As your arm feels stronger have them go a little deeper. As far as weight training try exercises that will strengthen your shoulder, and also work on your thighs, hips and abs. While your arm will be easy to focus on don't forget about your mechanics and strengthen those muscles that you use in your throwing motion.

Answer 2

The best way for you to improve is to stop trying to be something you're not, and use the skills you have.  Montana made a career out of short, crisp crossing routes, button-hooks, square-outs and stunt-and-go patterns. He never had Marino deep-out ability. Who won more Super Bowls?  If you have receivers with enough flat-out speed to go deep consistently, then they should be even better with short, WELL RUN, patterns, because it takes the safety out of the game, and isolates them one-on-one with the corners.  Any accurate passers dream scenario.

I was on a touch team in a 178 team league that crushed most teams we played.  We had a quarterback that matched your profile.  We kept our completion rate high by running very precise patterns with a very accurate passer.  We opened up his throwing lanes by using roll-right, or roll-left blocking patterns, where he could pass, or fake the pass and run, or fake the run, then move the ball overhead to the sidelines as the safety sucked in on a crossing fake or button hook.  If you spread the field with good wideouts who run SHARP cuts in their patterns, you won't be able to be defended if you're as accurate as you state.  That offense is unstoppable with a precise, quick rollout passer.

35 yards is plenty of distance on a 50 yard field.  But if you're serious about having to throw longer do three things:

1.  Resistance work on your throwing arm.  Weights on a wall on a pulley - not heavy - just repetitive, and complete your throwing motion in slow motion.  Be sure to pronate your wrist at the end of the motion (don't get wreckless and get injured) because that is where the "snap" comes on your throws.

2.  Footwork.  This is critical.  Everybody wants to work on the top, but good footwork will dramatically aid your distance since good legs drive your passing. If you can't get help from an experienced passer/coach, experiment with different plants on longer patterns. I suspect (could be wrong) that you're not getting the most out of your potential here because you're having a difficult time seeing over the line and don't extend your forward leg as much because of sight lines. Worth asking someone else to observe.

3.  Core as described above. This joins your upper body and your legs together and adds the "coilspring effect" you're needing without overextending/injuring yourself.

All the best to you and your teammates.  The secret to touch football is taking the safeties out of the game, running a roll-out blocking scheme to wear out the defensive linemen and threaten with the run/short pass options, and use counter screens to your linemen occassionally to keep the defense off balance.  The rollout offense does this best because it makes the defense expend tremendous energy each play, gets all of your people in the game, and will eventually open up the bomb or medium sideline out pattern when the safeties/DBs get frustrated and start "cheating up" closer to the line of scrimmage to try and shut down your short game, and you get more throwing time due to oxygen-short defensive linemen.  Use your strengths.

Answer 3

work ur core(abs, lower back, oblquies)

thats how smaller people throw the ball far

Answer 4

A lot of stretching & eat a lot of carrots!

Answer 5

PRACTICE