Trench Lab · O-Line · Run Blocking · Coach Jay Freeman
How to pull as a guard
To pull as a guard, open with a bucket step (drop your playside foot back and open your hips toward the pull), run flat down the line of scrimmage staying tight behind the other linemen, then turn up sharply through the hole to kick out the end man or lead up on the linebacker. Stay low, keep your shoulders square as you turn up, and run to contact.
By Coach Jay Freeman · 32 years coaching the line · Updated May 31, 2026
The bucket step opens the pull
A pull starts with the feet. On the snap, the pulling guard takes a bucket step — dropping his playside foot back and open, which rotates his hips in the direction he's pulling without false-stepping forward. That first step buys depth so he clears the down linemen and gets onto a flat path. A guard who steps forward first gets tangled in the wash; the bucket step gets him clean.
Run flat, stay tight
Once he's opened, the puller runs flat down the line of scrimmage, staying tight behind his own linemen so he doesn't get washed up into the pile or run too deep. Eyes up, looking for the hole and his block. Depth is the enemy here — the flatter and tighter the path, the faster he arrives and the better the timing with the back.
Turn up and finish
At the hole, the puller turns up sharply — squaring his shoulders to the line of scrimmage — and finishes his block. On power, that's often a kick-out on the end man or a lead up onto the playside linebacker. Stay low through the turn, run your feet on contact, and finish. The pull is only as good as the block at the end of it.
Step by step
- Bucket step. Drop your playside foot back and open your hips toward the pull — no false step forward.
- Run flat and tight. Run flat down the line of scrimmage, staying tight behind your linemen, eyes up for the hole and your block.
- Turn up sharp. At the hole, turn up and square your shoulders to the line of scrimmage.
- Finish low. Kick out the end man or lead up on the linebacker — stay low, run your feet, and finish the block.
Common questions
- What is a bucket step when pulling?
- A bucket step is the pulling lineman's first step — dropping the playside foot back and opening the hips toward the direction of the pull. It rotates the hips and buys depth to clear the down linemen without a false step forward, getting the puller onto a clean, flat path.
- How do you pull as an offensive lineman without being slow?
- Open with a bucket step (not a forward false step), run a flat, tight path right behind your linemen rather than looping deep, and keep your eyes up for the hole. Depth and false steps are what make a pull slow — flat and tight is fast.