---
slug: phase
title: Phase
depth_tier: entry
side: SPECIAL TEAMS
category: Special Teams
source_id: "SIT-0035"
created: 2026-05-17
updated: 2026-05-17
canonical: https://learningfootball.xyz/terms/phase
aliases:
  - special teams phase
  - phase of football
  - kickoff phase
  - punt phase
  - kicking game phase
---
# Phase

## Short Definition

One of the three units of special teams—kickoff, punt, and field goal each constitute a phase with distinct personnel, assignments, and strategic objectives.

## Definition

A phase is one of the distinct units of special teams play—a specific situation with its own personnel, assignments, rules, and strategic objectives that is separate from every other special teams situation. The primary phases in football are kickoff and kickoff return, punt and punt return, and field goal and field goal block or PAT. Each phase has its own starting conditions, its own scoring or field position objectives, and its own cast of specialists who train specifically for that situation.

Understanding that special teams comprises multiple phases explains the complexity and depth of what broadcast coverage typically reduces to "kicking." A kickoff coverage player who sprints downfield to tackle a returner is doing an entirely different job than a punt protector who is blocking inside pressure from the launch point. A long snapper who delivers a precise snap for a field goal attempt is performing a different skill than the same snapper on a punt, where distance and height requirements change the mechanics.

Each phase requires separate preparation and separate personnel evaluation. Teams carry different players on their roster specifically because they excel at specific phases. Gunners—wide receivers or cornerbacks with elite straight-line speed—are valued for punt coverage phases because their job is sprint and tackle. Jammers—physical corners or safeties—are valued for punt return phases because their job is to reroute gunners. Personal protectors are valued specifically for the punt protection phase. None of these roles translates automatically to another phase.

The phase structure also explains the substitution patterns visible on television. When a punt team comes on, a specific group of players who have been on the sideline enters the game—players who may not have been on the field at all during the offensive or defensive series. These are phase specialists, players whose roster spots are justified by their contribution to specific special teams phases rather than by their offensive or defensive ability. The best special teams coordinators assemble rosters with depth in every phase rather than relying on offensive and defensive players to handle special teams as an afterthought.

## Example

"Third down. The offense fails to convert. Punt team comes on—ten different players from a different roster group. That's a phase change. The players who just came on have been preparing specifically for this situation. Special teams isn't one unit; it's a set of distinct phases with different people."

## Common Confusion

Special teams is not one unit—it is a collection of distinct phases that each use different personnel, different assignments, and different strategic objectives. A player who is excellent on the kickoff coverage unit might not be used on the punt protection unit. A kicker who handles kickoffs might not be the same player who handles field goals and PATs. Coaches build separate rosters and separate schemes for each phase; the phrase "special teams" describes the collective category, but the individual phases operate independently.

## Related

- kickoff-coverage
- punt
- field-goal
- gunner
- long-snapper
- personal-protector
- returner
- field-position

---
Source: https://learningfootball.xyz/terms/phase