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Field Goal Kicking Approach: Steps, Plant Foot and Swing

Updated · Fact checked

A field goal can go wrong before your foot ever touches the ball. If your starting spot shifts or your plant foot lands somewhere new, the swing has to fix it on the fly, and it usually can't. This drill locks in the two things you control on every kick: where you start and where you plant.

You can run it with a holder, a block or a tee, and you can run most of it with no ball at all.

How to Kick a Field Goal Series by IMG Academy Football (1 of 5)IMG Academy

How to do it

  1. Mark the hold

    Set the ball, block or tee on a line. That spot is the start of every rep.

  2. Walk off your steps

    Walk straight back, then step over to the side, with the same count, length and angle every time. Stand in your stance.

  3. Approach and plant

    On a signal, take your approach and plant beside the ball, about a foot length away with the heel roughly even with it. Freeze and check where the plant landed.

  4. Swing through

    Once the plant spot repeats, add the swing. Head down, hips square, follow through toward the target.

Sets and reps
Plant-foot placement reps: 3 sets of 5 each side, 30 seconds rest. Approach step tempo drill: 3 sets of 5, 45 seconds rest.
Equipment
Football, Holder, kicking block or tee, Tape or a cone to mark your plant spot
Muscles and skills
Hip flexors, Quads
Used in these 440 plans
Kicker

Coaching cues and common mistakes

Coaching cues

  • Same steps every time
  • Plant foot beside the ball, toes to target
  • Lock the ankle, follow through

Common mistakes

  • Changing approach length
  • Plant foot too far back

Walk off the same steps every time

Start at the spot of the hold, walk straight back, then step over to the side. Three back and two over is a common teaching setup; some kickers use three and three. Pick yours and keep the length and angle of every step identical. One coaching guide warns that bigger steps do not equal a bigger leg; what counts is that your starting point never changes.

Then hold still until the snap. Joe Nedney's routine was to start moving when he saw the ball move. From there, one coaching cue says to attack the plant, not the ball: get the plant foot down in the right spot and let the second step carry you into the kick.

Find the plant spot

The plant foot lands beside the ball, not behind it. One coaching guide puts it about one foot length to the side with the heel roughly even with the ball, adjusted slightly for the height of your holder's block. Mark the spot with tape or a scuff in practice and check it after every rep.

Then finish the kick toward your target. Nedney's checklist was head down, hips square and a follow through toward the target. Use this drill in the full football kicker training plan alongside hang time charting so you can see which approach changes help.

FAQ

How far from the ball should a kicker plant?

One coaching guide says about one foot length to the side of the ball with the heel roughly even with it. Too tight and you tend to strike the outside panel; too far back and you reach. Mark the spot in practice so your body learns it.

Do kicking steps change for kickoffs?

Yes. A kickoff comes off a tee with a longer running start. Joe Nedney used a seven step kickoff approach from about 10 yards back, while his field goal steps were three back and three over.

More kicker drills

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Sources

  1. How To Coach Field Goal Kicking (page title: How To Teach Field Goal Kicking: 7 Coaching Points; Chris Haddad, Bellingham (MA) High School coach, updated September 21, 2026), vIQtory Sports
  2. It's good! Javarone coaches Smith on finer points of field goal (November 2004), The Daily Princetonian
  3. Tips for Kicking with Joe Nedney (Sep 01, 2007), San Francisco 49ers (49ers.com)

Program numbers (benchmarks, sets, reps, loads, protein targets) are 440 Football's own prescriptions. For athletes 13 and older; check with a physician or a registered dietitian before major training or diet changes.