Counter is a play in football that results in a running back faking one way and running. It also involves pulling players to the opposite side while the other lineman “gap” blocks away. The counter has become a staple in the spread offense due to its ability to get linemen easy blocks and running backs into open space.

In American football, a counter run is a running play that starts in one direction but ends in the other direction. Typically, the running back will take a step in the opposite direction of the play, only to get the handoff in the other direction.

The counter scheme entails two offensive players pulling across the formation to the opposite side. What two players those are doesn’t really matter as far as the scheme itself is concerned. The most “true” counter is with the backside guard and tackle pulling.

Counter is a play that gives the illusion of Power in one direction, but then creates a series of blocks to allow the runner to go in the opposite direction. The play reverses the roles of Power where the backside Guard pulls and kicks out an edge defender and a Fullback inserts up onto an Inside Linebacker through the lane the Guard created.

The Counter Play is one of the most universal schemes in football. The Counter blocking scheme allows the offense to use gap blocking and misdirection to create a vertical seam in the defense. A major strength of this scheme is the ability to run multiple different backfield actions.