Safety (S), historically known as a safetyman, is a position in

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

on the

defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

. The safeties are

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

s who line up ten to fifteen yards from the

line of scrimmage In gridiron football, a line of scrimmage is an invisible transverse line (across the width of the field) beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun. Its location is based on the spot where the ball is placed after the end ...

. There are two variations of the position: the free safety (FS) and the strong safety (SS). Their duties depend on the defensive scheme. The defensive responsibilities of the safety and

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

usually involve pass coverage towards the middle and sidelines of the field. While American (11-player) formations generally use two safeties, Canadian (12-player) formations generally have one safety and two defensive halfbacks, a position not used in the American game. As professional and

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

have become more focused on the passing game, safeties have become more involved in covering the eligible pass receivers.Safeties are the last line of defense; they are expected to be reliable tacklers, and many safeties rank among the hardest hitters in football. Safety positions can also be converted

s, either by design ( Byron Jones) or as a cornerback ages ( Rod and

Charles Woodson Charles Cameron Woodson (born October 7, 1976) is an American former professional football player who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers. He spent his first 14 seasons as ...

, DeAngelo Hall, Lardarius Webb, Tramon Williams). Historically, in the era of the

one-platoon system The one-platoon system, also known as "iron man football", is a platoon system, rule-driven substitution pattern in American football whereby the same players were expected to stay on the field for the entire game, playing both offense and defense ...

, the safety was known as the defensive fullback (specifically the free safety; the strong safety would be a

defensive halfback The halfback in Canadian football, and most commonly the Canadian Football League, currently refers to the defensive back rather than the running back, as in American football. The defensive halfback lines up inside covering the slotback. They a ...

, a term still in Canadian parlance) or

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as goalie or netminder) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their own team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays ...

Free safety

The free safety tends to watch the play unfold and follow the ball as well as be the "defensive quarterback" of the backfield. The free safety is typically assigned to the quarterback in man coverage, but as the quarterback usually remains in the

pocket A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets are also attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items. In older usage, a pocket was a separate small bag o ...

, the free safety is "free" to cover another player. On pass plays, the free safety is expected to assist the cornerback on his side and to close the distance to the receiver by the time the ball reaches him. If the offense puts a receiver in the

slot Slot, the slot or Slots may refer to: People * Arne Slot (born 1978), Dutch football manager, former player * Gerrie Slot (born 1954), Dutch cyclist * Hanke Bruins Slot (born 1977), Dutch politician * Tonny Bruins Slot (born 1947), Dutch assoc ...

, then the free safety may be called upon to cover that receiver. Because of their speed and deep coverage, free safeties are especially likely to make interceptions. Offenses tend to use the

play-action pass A play-action pass (also known as a play fake or simply "play-action") is an American football play. The play action starts with what appears to be a running play, but turns out to be a pass play; in this way, it can be considered the opposite of ...

specifically to make the free safety expect a run play, which would draw him closer to the line of scrimmage, and reduce his effectiveness as a pass defender. Furthermore, quarterbacks often use a technique to "look off" a free safety, by looking away from the intended target receiver's side of the field during a pass play, with the intention to lure the free safety away from that side of the field. This phenomenon often tests how effective a free safety's savvy and athleticism are at defending long pass plays. Free safeties occasionally blitz as well. When this happens, the pressure on the quarterback can be severe since a blitz by a defensive back is not usually anticipated. Current examples of free safeties active in the NFL include Marcus Williams, Justin Simmons,

Minkah Fitzpatrick Minkah Annane Fitzpatrick Jr. (born November 17, 1996) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

Quandre Diggs Quandre Diggs (born January 22, 1993) is an American professional football safety. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, and was selected by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft. He played his first two years ...

Kevin Byard Kevin Leon Byard III (born August 17, 1993) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Middl ...

, Micah Hyde, and Jessie Bates III.

Strong safety

The word ''strong'' in strong safety is used because he is assigned to cover the "strong side" of the offense, the side on which the

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), 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 (football), receiv ...

, a typically big, powerful receiver, lines up on offensive plays. Often they are indeed stronger than the free safety, since the player’s assignment tends to require more power as opposed to agility. The strong safety tends to play closer to the line than the free safety does, and assists in stopping the run. He may also cover a player, such as a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

or fullback or H-back, who comes out of the backfield to receive a pass. A strong safety's duties are a hybrid of those belonging to a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

in a 46 or 3-4 defense and those of the other defensive backs, in that he both covers the pass and stops the run. Current examples of strong safeties active in the NFL include Kyle Hamilton,

Jamal Adams Jamal Lee Adams (born October 17, 1995) is an American professional football safety. He played college football for the LSU Tigers, and was selected by the New York Jets sixth overall in the 2017 NFL draft. Adams quickly became an impactful st ...

, Jordan Poyer, Harrison Smith, Budda Baker, Tyrann Mathieu and Derwin James. Strong safeties are not seen in the Canadian game; however, the strong side linebacker in Canadian football is assigned similar duties to the American football strong safety. As such, Canadian football strong side linebackers are often players who played strong safety in college or the NFL.

References

External links

phillyBurbs.com ''Football 101: The Free Safety''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Safety (American And Canadian Football Position) American football positions Goalkeeping