Glossary of American Football - O

O

offensive team

The team with possession of the ball

offside

An infraction of the rule that requires both teams to be on their own side of their restraining line as or before the ball is put in play. Offside is normally called on the defensive team during a scrimmage down and on the kicking team during free kick downs.

In Canadian football, at the time a ball is kicked by a teammate, being ahead of the ball, or being the person who held the ball for the place kick

one back formation

A formation where the offensive team has one running back in the backfield with the quarterback. Other eligible receivers are near the line of scrimmage.

onside kick

A play in which the kicking team tries to recover the kicked ball.

option run or option

Usually, a type of play in which the quarterback has the option of handing off, keeping, or laterally passing to one or more backs. Often described by a type of formation or play action, such as triple option, veer option, or counter option. Teams running option plays often specialize in them.

Less often, a play in which a back may either pass or run.

option offense

An offense heavily relying upon the option run and variations thereof.

outside

Opposite of inside