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45-467: This formation has been particularly popular because teams can both run and pass the football out of it with an equal amount of success. It keeps defenses guessing what type of play the offense will run. Because the backs are opposite each other, it takes the defense longer to read the gap through which the offense will run the ball. The set can be run with a single tight end and two receivers or no tight ends and three receivers. A standard pro set places

90-490: A three point blocking stance, two point receiver's stance, or put in motion like a flanker or offensive back. Head coach Jon Gruden referred to such multi-dimensional tight ends as "jokers", calling Winslow the first ever in the NFL. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick notes that the pass-catching tight ends that get paid the most are "all direct descendants of Kellen Winslow", and there are fewer tight ends now that can block on

135-404: A player removed in the second half was lost for the game. With no limits to the size of a college football roster, a severe competitive advantage was thereby created for large collegiate football programs, which could send in multiple waves of talented players; smaller schools typically experienced a severe talent drop-off between starters and reserves. This provided the impetus for reform of

180-563: A receiver. Over time the emphasis of offense has shifted from running to passing, and with it the role of the tight end as a receiver expanded. The tight end is usually faster than the linebackers who cover him and often stronger than the cornerbacks and safeties who try to tackle him. In general, there is an inherent trade-off between a tight end's speed and agility and their size, meaning more mobile tight ends tend not to be as effective as blockers. This results in great premiums being placed on tight ends that can fill both roles effectively. When

225-553: A team cannot find both in a single player they often rotate between those who are stronger in one role better than the other depending on the type of skill required by given plays. At the extreme end the receiving spectrum are 'hybrid' tight ends that are drafted primarily for their pass-catching abilities. Often, these players have near- wide receiver speed, coupled with greater overall size and strength. Plays utilizing their assets are designed to capitalize on their combination of size, speed, and wingspan, at times spreading them out on

270-578: A tight end with a speed advantage—at the expense of blocking ability—is 6-foot-3-inch (1.91 m) 248-pound (112 kg) Vernon Davis , who achieved a 4.38 forty yard dash time. In American football, specific skill positions typically are issued jersey numbers in a restricted range. High school rules nationally are determined by the National Federation of State High School Associations ; tight ends are able to wear any number other than 50–79. The NCAA "strongly recommends" ends wear 80–99, but this

315-497: A year. Some of the top tight ends make around 17 million dollars a year. This position is amongst the lowest paid in the NFL. The advent of the tight end position is closely tied to the decline of the one-platoon system during the 1940s and '50s. Originally, substitutions were limited by rule, forcing players to be adept on both sides of the ball, with most offensive linemen doubling as defensive linemen or linebackers, and running backs and receivers doubling as defensive backs. With

360-508: Is an offensive position in American football , arena football , and Canadian football . It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver . As part of the receiver corps, they play inside the flanks (tight), contrasted with the split end who plays outside the flanks (wide). Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be effective blockers. On

405-403: Is not required. In the NFL, numbering has changed in 2021, which allows them to wear numbers 0-49 and 80–89. The 0–49 number range is a relatively recent addition to the rules; as a result, most tight ends still bear numbers in the 80–89 range. Two-platoon system The two-platoon system is a tactic in American football enabled by rules allowing unlimited substitution adopted during

450-641: The CFL , but are still used at the college level in U Sports . Tony Gabriel is a former tight end in Canadian football. There remain some tight ends in use at university level football ; Antony Auclair , formerly a tight end for the Laval Rouge et Or , was a contender to be selected in the 2017 CFL Draft or possibly receive a tryout in the NFL. He was drafted by the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2017, but instead signed with

495-441: The quarterback and running backs, at their "flank." The receivers on each end of the line of scrimmage retained their historic name, "ends." By the start of the 1960s many pro clubs had begun to position the flanker back far to the outside, just behind the line of scrimmage, part of what Washington Redskins coach Bill McPeak characterized as a "three ends" system. The receiver spread out on numerically inferior "weak" side of

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540-465: The " platoon " terminology in reference to the type of military unit. Between 1946 and 1950, Blaik's two-platoon teams twice finished the season ranked second in the Associated Press polls and never finished lower than 11th. By 1949, the "Army two-platoon system" had gained wide use among those college teams with ample manpower resources. Rules at that time permitted unlimited substitution whenever

585-413: The "two-platoon" system was by Michigan head coach Fritz Crisler in 1945 against an Army team under head coach "Colonel" Earl "Red" Blaik . Michigan lost the game, 28–7, but Crisler's use of eight players who played only on offense, eight who played only on defense, and three that played both, impressed Blaik enough for him to adopt it for his own team. Blaik, a former soldier himself, coined

630-479: The 1940s. The "two platoons", offense and defense, are an integral part of the game today. Although professional football has uninterruptedly retained the two-platoon system since 1949, in 1953 the NCAA took the collegiate game back to the one-platoon system with new limited substitution rules, changes made ostensibly for financial and competitive reasons. These rules remained in place until a return to unlimited substitution

675-667: The 1960s led to the emergence of the first stars at the position, including Mike Ditka of the Chicago Bears , Jackie Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals , and John Mackey of the Baltimore Colts . Nonetheless, tight ends remained primarily blockers lined up next to an offensive tackle and given short to medium drag routes . Starting in 1980, the Air Coryell offense began using tight end Kellen Winslow in wide receiver-type routes. Winslow

720-483: The 1965 season, teams to form separate offensive and defensive units as well as " special teams " which would be employed in kicking situations. The reinstatement of the two-platoon system allowed players to become more specialized by focusing on a limited number of plays and skills related to their specific position. With players now fresher, coaches could now build their teams for speed and agility rather than brute strength and endurance; Don Coryell took advantage of

765-531: The Great Adjustment," in which teams scrambled to tighten their rosters and adapt their offensive and defensive strategies as they "made the switch from free-wheeling unlimited substitution into the tighter, more conservative pattern of single platoon play." After the 1964 season, twelve years since the mandate requiring one-platoon, the NCAA repealed the rules enforcing its use and allowed an unlimited amount of player substitutions. This allowed, starting with

810-433: The NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent that same year. Since 2019, the NFL celebrates National Tight Ends Day on the fourth weekend of October to highlight tight ends in the league. Tight ends have two primary roles: (1) act as a blocker and (2) act as a receiver. Very occasionally, a tight end is also given the opportunity to rush with the ball. This typically happens when they are put in motion before

855-636: The NFL's 15 players with the most receptions that year were tight ends, the most in NFL history. Previous seasons usually had at most one or two ranked in the top. Tight ends generally hit their peak between the ages of 25 and 30. In the Arena Football League the tight end serves as the 3rd offensive lineman (along with the center and guard). Although they are eligible receivers they rarely go out for passes and are usually only used for screen passes when they do. However, in Canadian football, tight ends are, in general, no longer used professionally in

900-468: The backs about 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage , spaced evenly behind the guards or tackles . In this look, teams may utilize two halfbacks, or one halfback and one fullback . A variation of the pro set places the backs offset toward either side. This look is almost universally used with one fullback and one halfback. The backs line up closer to the line of scrimmage than in a standard pro set, about 3 yards deep. The fullback lines up directly behind

945-705: The ball changed hands or when the clock was stopped, but allowed only limited substitution with a running clock. There was very little advance warning that a major reversion to previous substitution rules was in the offing in college football in 1953. Ahead of the annual convention of the NCAA Football Rules Committee , held each January, the rules committee of the American Football Coaches Association voted 6 to 1 to recommend continuation of liberal substitution rules, voting 4 to 1 in favor of completely unlimited substitution. But behind

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990-482: The ball is snapped. In the National Football League ( NFL ), the tight end is larger, stronger, and slower than a wide receiver , and therefore able to block more effectively. Among offensive ball-handlers, it is the job of the tight end, along with the fullback , to block for both running backs and receivers. Tight ends are used as blockers to protect the quarterback during passing plays, to open holes in

1035-413: The defensive backfield with such an unusual formation. When a blocker larger than a tight end is desired without sacrificing the player's ability to catch a pass the position is sometimes filled by an offensive lineman who reports to the referee that he is an eligible receiver, referred to colloquially as a "tackle eligible". Historically, the primary role of a tight end was blocking, with strategic use as

1080-559: The early 2010s, the pro set almost completely disappeared from the NFL, however in the late 2010s it was used once again as an occasional goal line and passing down formation by West Coast offense based teams. Andy Reid recently used the Pro Set in Super Bowl LVII against the Eagles late in the 4th quarter, which led to a game leading field goal. Tight end The tight end ( TE )

1125-421: The formation was commonly known as the "split end;" the end lining up to the same side as the flanker, positioned close to the blocking linemen, became known as the "tight end." This tight end position, developed in the 1950s, embraced both blocking and receiving functions and flourished as part of the specialization of the two-platoon era. Greater use of the tight end as a receiver in the cutting edge offenses of

1170-422: The gathering, voted to eliminate free substitution and thus the two-platoon system from the college game, effective with the forthcoming 1953 season. Driving the return to "iron man" football was the high cost of fielding large two-platoon squads — an expense which had forced 50 small schools to terminate their football programs for financial reasons. Fritz Crisler, regarded as a father of the two-platoon scheme,

1215-474: The interest of football's future to bring an end to the two-platoon system." The new 1953 rules revisions specified that a player removed during the first or third quarter could not return to the field until the subsequent quarter. Those removed prior to the last four minutes of the second or fourth quarter could not return until the final four minutes of that same quarter. In addition, only one player could be substituted between plays, effectively putting an end

1260-464: The line like wide-receivers, off the line in the slot, or putting them in motion in the backfield. The decline of the fullback as a rushing position has seen the occasional deployment of tight ends as ball carriers, either aligned in the backfield or out of the slot in a reverse or sweep. Most tight ends are large in size, with an average height of 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) and a weight exceeding 254 lb (115 kg). They are usually among

1305-405: The line, and downfield to tie up linebackers and defensive backs. Historically, a single tight end was used, typically placed on the right side of the offensive line. In the early 2000s, two tight end formations began to be used with more frequency. Specialty plays may deploy 3- or 4-tight-end sets in "heavy" or "jumbo" packages, usually to block in short-yardage situations or to sow confusion in

1350-738: The line. In the 1990s, Shannon Sharpe 's athletic prowess as a route-runner helped change the way tight ends were used by teams. Consistently double-covered as a receiver, he became the first tight end in NFL history to rack up over 10,000 career receiving yards. Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates , who both played basketball in college, pushed the position toward wide receiver speed and power forward strength and wingspan. At 6'6" Rob Gronkowski brought height, setting single-season tight end records in 2011 with 17 touchdowns—breaking Gates's and Vernon Davis 's record of 13—and 1,327 receiving yards, surpassing Winslow's record of 1,290. Jimmy Graham that season also passed Winslow with 1,310 yards. Six of

1395-475: The manpower edge certainly won't mean as much to us as before." Coach Chuck Taylor of Stanford concurred, declaring, "I have felt the unlimited substitution rule hurt small schools such as ours. I think the education and moral values of the game, which, after all, remain the basic reason for its being played at all, will be enhanced." The 1953 NCAA football season was retrospectively referred to by Detroit Free Press sportswriter Tommy Devine as "The Year of

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1440-495: The mass switching of offensive and defensive units. Coaches were deeply divided over the return to the "iron man" game. Alabama head coach Red Drew charged that the 1953 revisions returned college football "to the horse and buggy days." On the other hand, coaches of smaller schools indicated that the rule changes would make their institutions the beneficiaries. Assistant coach Gene Menges of San Jose State University said, "It definitely will help us. Against larger squads

1485-403: The other hand, unlike offensive linemen, they are eligible receivers and potent weapons in a team's offensive schemes. The tight end's role in any given offense depends on the preferences and philosophy of the head coach , offensive coordinator , and overall team dynamic. In some systems, the tight end will merely act as a sixth offensive lineman, rarely going out for passes. Other systems use

1530-546: The pro set gives a quarterback an abundance of time to find an open receiver. The formation has lost its popularity at the college and professional level recently with the rise of shotgun split back formations. It remains common at the high school level . In the National Football League , in the mid-to-late 2000s, the formation was used almost exclusively by West Coast offense -based teams in occasional third down passing situations and goal-line situations. In

1575-508: The quarterback, in the same spot as in the I-Formation. The halfback then lines up behind either the left or right tackle. Once the run has been established, it can be a dangerous formation. Because of the real threat of a team running out of the pro-set, defenses must respect the play fake and play run. This pulls the safety to the line and opens up the middle of the field deep. Also, with both backs in position to "pick up" an outside blitz ,

1620-475: The quarterbacks and wide receivers that were overlooked in the days of one-platoon ball to create one of the first predominantly passing offenses in top-level football. This, in turn, prompted defenses to respond in kind with wider-open defenses that emphasized linebackers and defensive backs , which in turn led to the rise of modern defenses such as the 4–3 defense and 3–4 defense and led to earlier defenses with more defensive linemen becoming obsolete. By

1665-435: The rationale for a further loosening of substitution rules. A rule allowing unlimited substitution was initiated, with players now permitted to rest and return as many times as they wished per quarter. The limited pool of talented players was thus better conserved. This rules change had the corollary effect of opening the game to offensive and defensive specialization — the so-called "two-platoon" system. The first known use of

1710-474: The relaxation of substitution rules in professional football from the 1940s and after 1964 in the college game, a two-platoon system of offense and defense became the norm, with most players active on only one side of the ball. With the advent of the T-formation , double halfback sets quickly became a thing of the past, with a hybrid running back–receiver known as the "flanker back" positioned outside and behind

1755-472: The scenes, smaller schools, hit by the dramatically increased costs necessary to field larger two-platoon teams, applied pressure for a return to earlier rules which greatly restricted substitution—effectively forcing players to play both offense and defense. The change would be sudden. The January 1953 convention of the NCAA's rules committee, acting at the behest of a resolution drafted by the NCAA Council to

1800-463: The substitution rule effective with the 1933 season. Henceforth, players could be removed from the game for rest and recuperation and return to action once per quarter. This allowed talented starters to spend more time on the field, enabling small programs to remain more competitive with their larger peers. A lack of players during World War II , during which many able-bodied college-age men volunteered for or were drafted into military service, provided

1845-616: The taller members of the team, comparable in height to many linemen. Tight ends need to have this combination of physical attributes because they can be called upon to block linebackers and defensive linemen, as well as run routes and catch passes from the quarterback while outrunning defensive backs. They are also among teams’ heavier players, with only linemen and some linebackers weighing more than averaged-sized tight ends. Because of their larger size, tight ends are almost universally slower than wide receivers and running backs, although occasionally one with exceptional speed appears; an example of

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1890-460: The tight end primarily as a receiver, frequently taking advantage of the tight end's size to create mismatches in the defensive secondary. Many coaches will often have one tight end who specializes in blocking on running plays while using a tight end with better pass-catching skills in passing situations. Offensive formations may have as few as zero or as many as three tight ends at one time. NFL tight ends in 2024 make an average of 8 million dollars

1935-452: Was ironically in charge of this return to the college game's former limited substitution rules, chairing the rules committee meeting in his new capacity of athletic director of the University of Michigan. Crisler declared: "We were gravely concerned about those schools who have had to abandon football. In the end, after three days of serious, unselfish discussion, we decided it was necessary in

1980-485: Was lined up wide, in the slot against a smaller cornerback , or put in motion to avoid being jammed at the line. Defenses would cover him with either a strong safety or a linebacker , because zone defenses were less popular. Strong safeties in those times also were favored for their run defense over coverage speed. Providing them another defender to help cover Winslow opened up holes for other receivers. Winslow would line up unpredictably in any formation, variously in

2025-406: Was made for the 1965 season. In its earliest iteration, American football — like the sport of rugby whence it sprung — featured all players switching between offense and defense as required, in continuous action without leaving the field. This one-platoon system was mandated by rule. Prior to 1932, a player removed during the first half could not return to the field until the second half, while

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