There are many formations that are used today in football. And the more popular formations that are used will depend on the level of the football that is being played and the team that is playing. However, there are certain football formations that seem to be more popular for at least college and professional football teams. These football formations are the pro set formation, the I-formation, the shotgun formation, and the spread formation.

Of course there are many other formations that exist and coaches seem to come-up with slightly new ones quite often. Some of these other formations are the double tight-end (usually used for running), three, four, and five wide receiver sets (usually used for passing) and the short yardage formation (used to run the ball and try to gain short yardage. Then there’s also punt, punt return, field goal, and kicking formations that teams will use when playing special teams.

The first formation that is popular for an offense to use is the pro set. The pro set formation usually uses two wide receivers, two running backs, and a tight end. It’s called the pro set because the two runningbacks line-up in the backfield parallel with each other on each side of the quarterback. The backs line-up about three yards in the backfield. From this formation the ball can be thrown or run equally.

The I-formation is usually run with the same personnel as the pro set. However, in this formation the fullback lines-up directly behind the quarterback and the halfback lines-up directly behind the fullback. This is a strong running formation but teams can easily pass out of it too. Often the play-action pass (faking a handoff and then throwing) works well. Teams also run what is known as an off-set I, which is when the halfback lines-up in the same spot but the fullback lines-up to the left or the right of the quarterback.

The shotgun formation was popularized by the Dallas Cowboys back in the 1970s. This football formation has the quarterback line-up a few yards behind the center. Obviously this formation lends itself to throwing the ball. It became very popular during the 1980s and the 1990s but teams are starting to use it less now. This is because the shotgun let’s the defense know the play is probably going to be a pass. Also, this formation doesn’t allow for any timing plays.

Finally, the spread formation spreads the offense all around the field. Rather than having just a couple players lining-up wide, the spread formation lines several players out wide. This is a good formation to throw the ball and to run the ball but it lends itself more to throwing the ball. Because of the spread formation there is a very high risk and reward that’s possible on each play.

There are many football formations in the game of football. Some formations are most useful for runs and other formations are more useful for passes. Four popular offensive formations are the pro-set formation, the I-formation, the shotgun formation, and the spread formation.