Fullback (gridiron football)

A fullback (FB) is a position in the offensive backfield in gridiron football and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback. Fullbacks are typically larger than halfbacks, and, in most offensive schemes, the fullback's duties are split among power running, pass catching, and blocking for both the quarterback and the other running back.

Many great runners in the history of American football have been fullbacks, including Jim Brown, Marion Motley, Bronko Nagurski, Jim Taylor, Franco Harris, Larry Csonka, Tom Rathman, John Riggins, Christian Okoye, and Levi Jackson. However, many of these runners would retroactively be labeled as halfbacks, due to their position as the primary ball carrier; they were primarily listed as fullbacks due to their size and did not often perform the run blocking duties expected of modern fullbacks. Examples of players who have excelled at the hybrid running–blocking–pass catching role include Mike Alstott, Larry Centers, C. J. Ham, William Henderson, Daryl Johnston, Kyle Juszczyk, John Kuhn, Vonta Leach, Le'Ron McClain, Lorenzo Neal, Marcel Reece and Patrick Ricard

A decline in the usage of fullbacks, particularly at the professional level, occurred during the late 2000s to mid 2010s. Moreover, the term fullback is increasingly used to refer to specifically running backs focused on blocking, much like how the original quarterback is the blocking back. This is likely due to teams beginning to focus more on passing, as well as the increased popularity of personnel groupings and formations that omit the position. As a result, the role of fullbacks as ball-carriers in the run game has decreased, and most fullbacks only run the ball in rare instances, typically in short-yardage situations. The position's decline was at its peak in the lowest 2010s, where many NFL teams began phasing the position out of their offenses entirely. However, following the 2017 NFL season the position saw a gradual resurgence and evolution as teams began using the position again. By the early 2020s, most NFL teams had returned to using the position in some capacity in their offenses. Most NFL teams either carry an officially designated fullback, a hybrid player who plays fullback in addition to playing another position (usually tight end), or use a rotation of players at the position.