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· 1,457 ratings · 72 reviews

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It took me so long to write up this review because I read the book three times in a row. Excellent and unique look at major innovations in football strategy within their historical context. You don't just learn what the Air Raid offense or a one-gap vs two-gap defense is all about. Brown explains briefly but completely what forces and people at a particular moment in time led to the development of those strategies.

Two factors really jumped out at me, as a newish football fan. One is how many inn

Two factors really jumped out at me, as a newish football fan. One is how many innovations came from the college ranks (I went to the University of Chicago, so I find college football baffling and terrifying as an experience). If the accounts in this book are to be trusted, it seems that most fundamental strategic innovations are thought up by college coaches and technically refined to their most perfect form in the NFL. The second theme that emerges often is how much certain plans are built around the specific skillsets of star players such as Troy Polamalu, Tim Tebow, or Vince Wilfork.

I should note that I read this book on a Kindle, and I usually hesitate to buy books with a lot of charts on the Kindle because the formatting is usually awful. The author told me he had made a special effort to format the volume nicely for the e-book, and I can report he did his usual thorough job of it.

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Jan 05, 2014 Todd rated it really liked it

If you read his blog, you've seen some of this content. It's good content though and you will be a smarter fan for reading this. Catch up here and then put the blog in your RSS, you won't regret it. If you read his blog, you've seen some of this content. It's good content though and you will be a smarter fan for reading this. Catch up here and then put the blog in your RSS, you won't regret it. ...more

Just trying to learn the rules!

Jul 14, 2021 Tom Stamper rated it really liked it

This relatively short book focuses mostly on defensive play schemes. Brown uses examples of teams and players around the year 2010, but also incorporates the history of defensive formations and the evolution of the game. There is also a little here on offensive schemes using Steve Spurrier as an example or the way Belichick used TEs Gronkowski and Hernandez on the field together. It's the kind of book that will benefit you a great deal if you attend games in person and can watch the whole field. This relatively short book focuses mostly on defensive play schemes. Brown uses examples of teams and players around the year 2010, but also incorporates the history of defensive formations and the evolution of the game. There is also a little here on offensive schemes using Steve Spurrier as an example or the way Belichick used TEs Gronkowski and Hernandez on the field together. It's the kind of book that will benefit you a great deal if you attend games in person and can watch the whole field. Because television focuses on the ball you don't always see some of the great plays that happen away from it, unless a producer runs a replay.

A lot of my football knowledge has been limited to what I see on TV or the value players have in fantasy leagues. This is a good explanation of things I've heard or read elsewhere, but more accessible to the average fan. His chart drawings also help you get a visual where players line up and move during a play.

Examples used for study are the 1985 Bears 62 defense that went 15-1 and won the Superbowl, Jimmy Johnson using the 4-3 defense used to counter the wishbone offense in college and the NFL, Cover 1, Tampa 2, and such. I can see going back to it during the season and re-reading sections.

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Great book with a compilations of articles that explain the basics about football and revolutionary ideas. From the spread to the 2 gap defense, Brown creates a type of football syllabus. Loved this reading because it uses real life examples that make you want to learn more plus understand the real world.

Generally solid but dated football knowledge for the more dedicated fan. This was probably a five star book a decade ago, but now it does have the feel of reading analysis of headlines from 2010. Still if you can overcome this limitation there is plenty of insight into formations and technics that can add to your enjoyment of football.

Informative

Very informative on how to follow the game currently and historically. Easy read with good explanations. I would recommend it to anybody who wants to get a better understanding of the game.

Sep 21, 2019 Jared rated it it was amazing

A really fun collection of articles on the development of football strategy and tactics over the years. I've always been a fan of Chris Brown's blog and find his writing to be some of the most comprehensive and effective on the subject. A really fun collection of articles on the development of football strategy and tactics over the years. I've always been a fan of Chris Brown's blog and find his writing to be some of the most comprehensive and effective on the subject. ...more

Mar 07, 2021 Matt Ryan rated it really liked it

Solid if not random introduction to some light football history and mid-level concepts that can help to elevate anyone's knowledge of the game. Definitely dated but still a nice nugget and quick read for interested readers. Solid if not random introduction to some light football history and mid-level concepts that can help to elevate anyone's knowledge of the game. Definitely dated but still a nice nugget and quick read for interested readers. ...more

A good read

The book is easy to read and is an ode to football as it takes a few of the aspects and goes in depth in those aspects. A collection of long forms but very good long forms at that.

Feb 26, 2018 Ryan Hathaway rated it it was amazing

All Short Form but perfect bite size nuggets. Good mix of depth without getting bog down. Clear explanations of the schemes discussed.

Great book

Not a long book. But the short stories explain football concepts clearly. Great for reading on a bus or train

Jan 16, 2017 Jared rated it really liked it

This book is guaranteed to make you a smarter football fan

I chose to read "The Essential Smart Football" by Chris Brown because I very much enjoy baseball strategy/analysis books and thought "why not read one pertaining to football as well?". I have to say that I was a bit disappointed in this one, if only because it lacked any sort of structure.

Basically, this is a collection of short articles about specific football tactics (some offense, some defense, some based on players, some based on coaches, etc.). There are 18 articles in all and, while most of them are at least somewhat interesting, they are so "all over the map" that it is tough to go from one to the next.

Perhaps it is my fault for not "reading the directions" carefully enough (as I somewhat knew this was an essay collection going in), but I guess I was expecting something with a bit more structure. I mean, some of these "articles" are only a couple of pages long! There is nothing here even as remotely interesting as previous baseball analysis books I have read (although maybe baseball just lends itself better to such readings than does football).

Overall, I though "The Essential Smart Football" was "just okay". I did learn a little from it, but its theories and essays were so scattered across the board that it introduced too many new ideas in such a short space (only 141 pages).

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Two things need to be said about this short but compelling volume:

1) Chris Brown deserves to be commended for self-publishing this book. It's his writing, he has a preexisting audience, and there's no need for him to waste time with publishers, rewrites, etc. He's also selling it for mere "coffee money," which is justifiable given how brief it is.

2) The write-ups in here are top-notch, as regular readers of Smart Football would expect. The opening essay, on Charlie Strong's 3-3-5 defense (which

Two things need to be said about this short but compelling volume:

2) The write-ups in here are top-notch, as regular readers of Smart Football would expect. The opening essay, on Charlie Strong's 3-3-5 defense (which is available to read for free on Grantland), is tremendous; it's bookended by the even better "Ode to the War Daddies," a historical piece on 2-gap and 1-gap defensive techniques (also available in slightly different format on Grantland). Brown is to football what Grantland/Basketball Prospectus writer Sebastian Priuti and SI "The Point Forward" blogger Zach Lowe are to basketball: a brilliant analyst who painstakingly explains the inner workings of his favorite sport to readers. Such is not the case with the old Tom Verducci school of writers, who trade in clichés and anecdotes while leaving regular readers completely unaware of how the games they care about are actually played.

The best sportswriting is now found almost exclusively on the Internet (SI, ESPN The Mag, and the like are composed primarily of puff pieces and silly "Darius Miles is the New Jordan" hype-fests, with the occasional George Dohrmann UCLA exposé mixed in to keep things semi-relevant), and Chris Brown (who hasn't quit his day job) is one of its foremost practitioners. Support his good work by purchasing this extremely cheap book.

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Jun 05, 2012 David Klotz rated it really liked it

I came to SmartFootball.com somewhat late to the game, but have been an avid reader since. When I found out that Chris Brown was putting putting out a book of "best of" combined with new material, I was very excited to see the result. I have not been disappointed.

The book will be especially enjoyable to those who are unfamiliar with or new to the site. I had read only two of the older articles, but even there I found new insights after re-reading them. I suspect that even if you are familiar wit

My only minor complaint is that I wish some of the articles had been longer, and the older ones expanded on further. Several times I felt like I was getting into the meat of the essay only to find it ending on the next page. Despite that, I would consider this to be required reading for anyone interested in a deeper understanding of the strategy of football, at any level.

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Aug 15, 2014 David rated it really liked it

I love the sport of football for the same reason Chris B. Brown does: it's near perfect blend of athleticism and strategy. As he puts it, football is the "rare pastime that has the potential to stimulate our left and right brains equally." The result is a beautiful game.

This book is a compilation of essays Brown posted on his website smartfootball.com. It's not for the casual fan. He goes fairly in-depth over coaching strategies, techniques like the five versus seven step drop, and tactics for offensive and defensive line play that to a casual fan would sound as if he's writing in a foreign language. In addition, because these essays are essentially pieces lifted from his blog over time, they lack any particular coherence or unifying theme. But for those of us who love the sport, learning more about what is actually happening on the field is like an art lover studying art history. It gives you that much more of an appreciation of the masterpieces you love.

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Jul 18, 2012 Kasey rated it it was amazing

If you care about football (gridiron) and you aren't reading Chris Brown's Smart Football blog, you are missing out. He consistently is one of the best bloggers on the subject. He gets deep with play calling and game theory. His explanations of what are happening on plays (with video annotations) make you a better fan.

This is a collection of previously published work, some of it reworked a bit. I don't know that there was much here that I hadn't read, but it was all useful to go back through and

This is a collection of previously published work, some of it reworked a bit. I don't know that there was much here that I hadn't read, but it was all useful to go back through and review. If you haven't been a regular reader of his blog, this is the perfect place to start.

This is a self published title so the production quality is not superb. That said, it doesn't detract from the content and does a fine job delivering the knowledge.

One of the best books on football I've read.

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Oct 30, 2012 Jack Friedland rated it really liked it

This book was a joy to read for me because it is just football football football. It talks about big name coaches and players, and how they changed and shaped the game on all levels. It also teaches things like how to read defenses and how to interpret the game. One reason I liked it was because it teaches a lot about the history of football. It includes stuff like where certain parts of the game came from or which coach created which plays that were very successful. Another reason I liked it wa This book was a joy to read for me because it is just football football football. It talks about big name coaches and players, and how they changed and shaped the game on all levels. It also teaches things like how to read defenses and how to interpret the game. One reason I liked it was because it teaches a lot about the history of football. It includes stuff like where certain parts of the game came from or which coach created which plays that were very successful. Another reason I liked it was because this book has language only a football player could understand. After a while I would take a close look at the text and think "this would sound like nonsense to a regular person." I don't know why but I really liked that. ...more

Dec 03, 2012 Scott rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: Sports fans eager to understand their passion

Recommended to Scott by: Amazon.com

This a great encapsulation of the current popular schematics of football play calling. The book does a good job explaining why certain coaches, from professional to college, are enjoying success based on their unique style of football.
It would help to have a basic understanding of football since this is not an introduction yet an analysis of contemporary football.
My basic understanding of the game has been changed for the better as well as my perspective of the game. To be able to notice the int This a great encapsulation of the current popular schematics of football play calling. The book does a good job explaining why certain coaches, from professional to college, are enjoying success based on their unique style of football.
It would help to have a basic understanding of football since this is not an introduction yet an analysis of contemporary football.
My basic understanding of the game has been changed for the better as well as my perspective of the game. To be able to notice the intricate play calling and determine a coaches game plan leads to a more than satisfying game watching experience.
This book notes how the game has changed over the years and it will be interesting to compare this book to the style of football play several years from now. ...more

Jan 27, 2014 Geoff rated it really liked it

My relationship with football is increasingly complicated. I'm becoming increasingly convinced that being a fan is to contribute unethically to the destruction of human minds and bodies. I rarely watch a game on tv, since the stops & way too frequent commercials are boring. But I've become more and more fascinated my the tactics and strategy of the game, how different schemes succeed in solving problems, & how a play acctually works (analysis which is often missing from the qb-obsessed analysis My relationship with football is increasingly complicated. I'm becoming increasingly convinced that being a fan is to contribute unethically to the destruction of human minds and bodies. I rarely watch a game on tv, since the stops & way too frequent commercials are boring. But I've become more and more fascinated my the tactics and strategy of the game, how different schemes succeed in solving problems, & how a play acctually works (analysis which is often missing from the qb-obsessed analysis on tv). Does this make me a hypocrite? Maybe. But either way, this was a great book, pitched at the non-novice (whuch meant it was over my head a good amount), that shows (like millitary history) just how much thought and effort goes into preparing to destroy other humans. ...more

The book is really 12-15 articles by Brown about interesting football tactical observations. Brown tries to organize the concepts into historical and other chapters, but you could read any chapter separately and not suffer.

While this book is very interesting, but in this day and age -- 30 years after the Bill James' Abstracts -- we have come to expect a decent level of writing in sports books. Brown's writing is only fair, however, and the book suffers a bit for it.

In addition, there doesn't app

In addition, there doesn't appear to be any rhyme or reason to the topics that Brown has selected, other than "I have something interesting to say about this topic." As such, this isn't a complete tactical overview of football by any stretch.

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Oct 17, 2016 Jake rated it really liked it

Finishing SC Gwynne's wonderful book on Hal Mumme and the evolution of the forward pass made me remember that I had this small book on my kindle and I had been meaning to get to it for awhile. I enjoy Chris B. Brown's columns though my concern for the sport of football has led me to become less invested in it than I used to be. However, pouring through this excellent tome on football strategy and theory was a lot of fun and reminded me of why I still love the sport in spite of myself. I've alway Finishing SC Gwynne's wonderful book on Hal Mumme and the evolution of the forward pass made me remember that I had this small book on my kindle and I had been meaning to get to it for awhile. I enjoy Chris B. Brown's columns though my concern for the sport of football has led me to become less invested in it than I used to be. However, pouring through this excellent tome on football strategy and theory was a lot of fun and reminded me of why I still love the sport in spite of myself. I've always preferred football knowledge that went a little beyond surface deep and Brown does a great job of breaking down key concepts in the game through multiple tales and charting. Now I'm going to have to pick up his other book. ...more

Jan 25, 2015 Zeke rated it liked it

On the plus side, I feel like even as a pretty dedicated fan I learned new things and am sad I didn't read this earlier to try and put some new football-watching tendencies into practice. On the minus side, the book definitely felt more like a compilation of blog posts than a fully-formed book. And unfortunately, I often felt like I wished I was reading the blog posts instead - I think I would have been aided by watching some short video clips or GIFs to help illustrate the concepts. Still, alwa On the plus side, I feel like even as a pretty dedicated fan I learned new things and am sad I didn't read this earlier to try and put some new football-watching tendencies into practice. On the minus side, the book definitely felt more like a compilation of blog posts than a fully-formed book. And unfortunately, I often felt like I wished I was reading the blog posts instead - I think I would have been aided by watching some short video clips or GIFs to help illustrate the concepts. Still, always fun to learn new things about the games you've watched for years. Would recommend mostly for fans who already have a good baseline knowledge of the game. ...more

May 26, 2012 Eric rated it really liked it

I think I may have been an offensive coordinator in a previous life, because I can't get enough X's and O's. I've been reading Brown's blog (smartfootball.com) for a while now, and feel like it makes me a smarter, more adept fan because he's so in-depth, and yet so accessible. There's a chance it makes me better at NCAA 2012 as well. But anyway, I love learning about the schemes and concepts the top coaches use, love learning about where they came from, and love dreaming that I had something to I think I may have been an offensive coordinator in a previous life, because I can't get enough X's and O's. I've been reading Brown's blog (smartfootball.com) for a while now, and feel like it makes me a smarter, more adept fan because he's so in-depth, and yet so accessible. There's a chance it makes me better at NCAA 2012 as well. But anyway, I love learning about the schemes and concepts the top coaches use, love learning about where they came from, and love dreaming that I had something to do with any of it. ...more

Jul 11, 2012 Tim rated it really liked it

The only reason I didn't rate this book five stars is because it was all pre-existing material. That said the essays presented in this book are some of the best write-ups of football strategy you'll find anywhere on the internet. It's not the end-all be-all but like any subject no book will ever be that. What this book is, is a nice starting point to different strategies used in football while giving nods to how things evolved and why. I'd definitely recommend this to any and all football fans w The only reason I didn't rate this book five stars is because it was all pre-existing material. That said the essays presented in this book are some of the best write-ups of football strategy you'll find anywhere on the internet. It's not the end-all be-all but like any subject no book will ever be that. What this book is, is a nice starting point to different strategies used in football while giving nods to how things evolved and why. I'd definitely recommend this to any and all football fans who would like to look a little deeper at the game. ...more

Sep 27, 2012 Brad rated it really liked it

I really enjoy how Brown writes about football, focusing heavily on theory and execution while not being too dry. I'd hoped the book was more than just a summary of his blog posts, but that's all it is. It's a little disheartening that some of the posts weren't updated after their original publishing. (For instance, I'd like to know how Al Borges ended up using Denard Robinson, since I don't pay attention to Big Ten football.) Still, this is some good writing that explained a lot about some fund I really enjoy how Brown writes about football, focusing heavily on theory and execution while not being too dry. I'd hoped the book was more than just a summary of his blog posts, but that's all it is. It's a little disheartening that some of the posts weren't updated after their original publishing. (For instance, I'd like to know how Al Borges ended up using Denard Robinson, since I don't pay attention to Big Ten football.) Still, this is some good writing that explained a lot about some fundamental football concepts that, since I never played the game competitively, I don't know about. ...more

Interesting collection of Chris Brown's articles from the last couple of years, which aim to explain a specific part of football strategy / plays by focusing on the person behind it.
While I like the idea, and this includes quite a few on Brady / Belichick which I appreciate as a Patriots fan, I felt the articles actually don't get into the X and Os enough - often, some diagrams would help.

Additionally, the book is what it is - a collection of articles, rather than a coherent story in itself.

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With the exception of some instances of redundancy (which probably should be expected when reading a compilation of articles that have been formatted into chapters) , I thought the book was well written. Covering the topics that Brown did, it would be easy to lose the reader with excessive jargon or bore the reader by excluding concrete examples. Brown's moderation in regards to the above kept the reader engaged. With the exception of some instances of redundancy (which probably should be expected when reading a compilation of articles that have been formatted into chapters) , I thought the book was well written. Covering the topics that Brown did, it would be easy to lose the reader with excessive jargon or bore the reader by excluding concrete examples. Brown's moderation in regards to the above kept the reader engaged. ...more

Jan 10, 2013 Jonny Dent rated it really liked it

Chris Brown's blog is required reading for anyone who loves football and thinking. And his new book contains the same high quality cliche-free (and cliche de-bunking) analysis. That said, there isn't a whole lot of material in this book to justify a purchase if you've read his blog. A more comprehensive longer book would have been a much better offering than this small "greatest hits" blog reprinting. Chris Brown's blog is required reading for anyone who loves football and thinking. And his new book contains the same high quality cliche-free (and cliche de-bunking) analysis. That said, there isn't a whole lot of material in this book to justify a purchase if you've read his blog. A more comprehensive longer book would have been a much better offering than this small "greatest hits" blog reprinting. ...more

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"football, by its very nature, teaches everyone who plays it the greatest lesson of all: when you get knocked down—and in football, everyone eventually winds up on the turf—you must get up and give it another go. It may be a cliché, but if so it's one for a reason: in life, all of us must learn to get up and play the next play." — 0 likes

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