There was a time when if your kid wanted to play football the only option was to find a tackle football league to put them in. While this is fine for some kids, others want to play a version of the game that emphasizes skill, speed, and agility without worrying about head injuries or the need to jump straight into tackling. That is why kids flag football is a great way to introduce them to football in a low-risk, high-reward environment.
Here are some reasons to consider flag football for kids as a viable alternative to tackle football.
Your Kid Will Get Touches
This is the biggest reason that we at Tackle Smart Sports recommend flag football for kids as the perfect entry point into the sport. If tackle football, the ball is always in the hands of the quarterback, running backs, and wide receivers. Players are pigeonholed early – often due to nothing more than their size – and that is the position that they will play for their entire football career short of a change in their growth pattern.
In flag football, every player touches the ball. Even the player snapping the ball is eligible to catch it, meaning that every player on the field gets to work on their ball skills from a young age. Possessing the ball is the most fun part of football. Flag football will get your kid touches – and the chance to talk about highlight plays – in a way that regular tackle football may not.
Your Kid Will Get Less Contact
This is the main driver for parents to promote kids flag football to their children ahead of tackle football. In a world where brain injuries are a concern – though those concerns can be mitigated with proper tackle coaching technique as we show on this site – youth tackle football numbers are dropping. Some studies have suggested that numbers are down by as much as 20% over the last decade, and many of those players are turning to flag football as an alternative.
Note that we said, “less contact” and not “no contact”. This is still football. There will still be collisions as players go for the ball. What we do see, though, is less of the head-on-head contact that makes people watching the game wince on impact. If that is important to you and your kid, then flag football for kids is an excellent option.
The Game Is Less Expensive
This point is fairly self-evident when you look at the amount of kit needed for tackle football. Flag football is as simple as wearing a jersey, shorts, and cleats, though players may also want to wear a pair of receiver gloves as they develop their game. This is obviously less expensive than the full padding and helmet that tackle football require. There are also often fewer costs involved with travel, as most flag leagues are self-contained in one area or on one set of fields. If cost – and time – are important, then have your kid give flag football a try.
It Is The Perfect Stepping Stone
All the points above combine to make flag football a perfect stepping stone into football. Many kids will learn to love the game through that combination of passing, running, catching, and chasing, making them more excited to move on and play tackle football in the future. If they don’t love the game and want to play a different sport, then they will have learned that without you spending extra money on equipment that there is no other use for.
The side benefit here is that kids flag football will also make them more prepared for when they do strap on the pads. They will understand route running, how to move their body in space, and – most importantly – how to use that space to avoid collisions.
Your kid will be faster, lighter on their feet, and have a more developed football brain from their exposure to flag football. Combining that with some of the tackle and contact resources on our site – or through individual or small group coaching – will really give your kid a head start when the time to play tackle football comes around.
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