How is American Football like Chess?

Question

How is American Football like Chess?

Answer 1

This analogy of Football being like chess is used for several reasons. First, you have an offense and a defense which is similar to what a good chess player does, you either adopt an attacking style or defensive style. The chess board is all about position and controlling the board such as a row or column or maybe a diagonal. Football is about controlling the field as far as limiting yards, special personal packages, defenses positioning players to take away what the offense is trying to gain. In Chess the pawns play a major roll as blockers and point of attack pieces, football lineman have almost the exact role on a football field. In chess you are matching wits against your opponent. In Football it is matching wits with coaching staffs, one teams offensive coordinator against anothers defensive coordinator and vice versa. Those are the main points of similarity between the two.

Answer 2

Football Chess

Answer 3

As a chess player (USCF class C that porpoised into class B before I retired) I would say football. Assuming free flowing is guys or pieces acting to their limits. Let’s use a few plays from 2004 as an example. Patriots at Bills. Bruschi is showing blitz. Yes, he might drop into coverage after coming to the line, but if you are a lineman you can’t assume that. He comes to the line right in front of a guard. The ball is snapped and the guard pulls without even a token chip on Bruschi. As it was explained to me he was supposed to do that and the TE is supposed to trap block Bruschi. It was designed like that. Problem is the TE was busy trying to figure the music that was going through his head. (Unblocked, Bruschi caused a fumble. Buffalo bemoaned Bledsoe’s inability to avoid untouched linebackers and sent him to Dallas.) Bishops always move like bishops. Mike Mularkey’s, the chess player/coach, play was good, but TE’s (like a bishop in this example) sometimes have more brain farts than chess pieces. Another example of how Football is more complicated than Chess. Super Bowl XXXIX. McNabb throws long to Pinkston. There is no way on God’s green Earth Pinkstom makes the catch. For that one play, however, the bishop Pinkston moved like a knight and caught the pass. I sometimes wonder what happens if the pawn moves. I never wonder what happens if the pawn puts in a Herculean effort and moves three squares. Besides Pinkston I could use Brady’s *** pass or whatever. If I go 2007 we can have Tyree's helmet catch or Eli's escape. That totally unpredictable player stuff seems to happen at least once per game. I said "at least." No, Belichick and Gibbs are not like Bobby Fischer and Gary Kasparov. Football is more complex.

Answer 4

The only similarity I can think of is that the formations used by football teams could be compared to openings used in chess. Players in their place, pieces in their place, stuff like that.

Answer 5

It isn't. American Football is all about setting markers and getting to them so that you can get it to the final marker (inzone). With chess, it is all about betraying your opponent's pieces and bringing down the king.

Answer 6

Well, i guess because its very strategic. Its like a chess match between the coaches.

Answer 7

Is this a riddle? Every player has a particular set of boundaries within which s/he can execute his/her role - guess chess is like that too.



[added later] Thanks for the additional detail. I think Mecariab (below) has it right, though.

Answer 8

There's always at least two queens on the field.

Answer 9

They are both extremely phsyical sports.