The 5 Drills Every QB Coach Should Steal From the NFL

NFL QB coaches run simple drills with precise purpose. Here are 5 proven drills any high school coach can steal this week to build better quarterbacks.

# The 5 Drills Every QB Coach Should Steal From the NFL

I watched an NFL QB coach run a ten minute warm up a few years back and it changed how I coach. Not because the drills were flashy. They were not. They were boring. Repeatable. Simple.

But every single rep had a purpose. Every footwork pattern matched a concept they would run in practice. Every throw tied to a read they would see on Sunday.

That is the gap between most high school QB rooms and the league. Not talent. Not facilities. Intentionality.

I have stolen shamelessly from NFL coaches for a decade. Here are five drills I steal from the NFL every single week. If you coach quarterbacks at any level, these belong in your rotation.

## 1. The Pat And Go With A Purpose

Every NFL practice starts with pat and go. Most high school programs do it too. The difference is what happens inside the drill.

At the NFL level, pat and go is not a warm up throw. It is a mechanics rehearsal. The quarterback is working a specific footwork pattern. Three step, five step, play action fake, boot step. The receiver's route matches what the footwork would produce in the offense.

Most high school QBs just chuck it and jog. That is wasted reps.

Steal this: pick one drop per day and rep it in pat and go. If today is play action install day, every throw in pat and go uses a play action fake. The brain connects footwork to timing before you ever hit team period.

## 2. The Hitch And Move Drill

This one is stolen straight from Sean Payton's playbook. Simple setup. QB takes his drop, hits the top, then immediately moves. Not scrambles. Moves. A subtle slide right, a step up, a reset left.

Then he throws.

Why does this matter? Because almost no NFL throw happens from a clean pocket anymore. Defensive lines are too good. Pressure comes. Pockets shift.

Young QBs are trained to throw from the top of the drop. If the pocket moves, they freeze. Or they drop their eyes. Or they bail.

The hitch and move teaches the quarterback that movement is normal. Feet can reset. Eyes stay downfield. The throw still comes out on time.

We run this every Tuesday at The Stable. Three routes, always from a moving platform. It shows up on film within two weeks.

## 3. The Eye Manipulation Ladder

Here is one I picked up watching Kyle Shanahan teach. He calls it a progression drill, but it is really a lesson in lying.

The quarterback faces two receivers. He has to look off the first one, then come back to throw. Then three receivers, look off two, come back. Then four. The ladder keeps climbing.

The point is not the throw. The point is the eyes.

Defensive backs read eyes. Every young QB I evaluate has the same problem. They stare down their read. Safeties break on it. Interceptions happen.

The eye manipulation ladder forces the quarterback to use his eyes as a weapon. Look left, come back right. Look deep, come back shallow. By rep fifty, it becomes natural.

If your QB cannot move a safety with his eyes, he will not play college football. This drill builds that skill before the speed of the game punishes them.

## 4. The Escape Hatch

This one I took from watching Josh McDaniels coach Tom Brady. Brady was 43 years old and still practicing scramble drill every single week.

The drill is simple. The QB takes his drop. A coach or rusher collapses the pocket. The QB escapes to a predetermined side. Receivers run their scramble rules. QB throws off platform.

Here is what most high school coaches miss. Scramble drill is not improvisation. It is rehearsed chaos. The receivers have rules. The QB has rules. Everyone knows what to do when the play breaks down.

Without these reps, a broken play is just panic. With these reps, a broken play becomes a 30 yard gain.

Teach your QB the escape direction matches the protection. Teach your receivers the scramble rules. Rep it every week. You will steal first downs your opponents do not have.

## 5. The Red Zone Clock Drill

I stole this from a Rams practice I got to watch during my time around the league. Every red zone period had a clock running.

Not a practice clock. A game clock. Ticking down. The QB had to get the call, break the huddle, get to the line, read the defense, and throw. All while the clock ran.

Why? Because the red zone is where games are won. And in the red zone, everything is compressed. Less field. Less time. More pressure.

Most high school teams rep red zone with a relaxed pace. That is malpractice. Your QB needs to feel the squeeze before it matters on Friday night.

Put a clock on every red zone rep. Even in 7 on 7. The panic of the clock is a skill. Train it.

## Why These Drills Work

None of these are secret. None are reinvented wheels. They are proven patterns that NFL coaches use because they match how the game is actually played.

Here is the thing. NFL coaches do not run fancy drills. They run simple drills with precise purpose. That is the shift most high school programs need.

Stop looking for the next viral drill on Instagram. Start stealing from the best coaches in the world. They have been doing this a long time. They figured out what works.

Your QBs deserve that level of intentionality.

## Coaching From Love, Not Ego

When I teach coaches these drills, I tell them the same thing. It is not about looking smart. It is not about impressing parents at practice. It is about giving the quarterback every tool to succeed when the lights come on.

That is coaching from love. Giving without needing credit. Teaching the boring stuff because it works. Showing up Monday with the same intensity you had on Friday.

If you want a full breakdown of the coaching system we use at The Stable, including the drill progressions behind each of these concepts, book a discovery call at /consulting. I walk coaches through the whole framework. No pitch. Just real talk about how to build better quarterbacks.