running game

noun

variants or less commonly run game

plural running games also run games

American football

: offensive play in which the ball is snapped or handed to a player who attempts to run toward the end zone to score

Those scores came amid a game plan that focused on the running game and short passing game …

—Nick Pugliese

He also did significant damage in the running game, carrying seven times for 40 yards.

—Bob Brookover

… the Jaguars stayed with the running game, using a variety of direct snaps to backs …

—Aimee Ford Foster

… developing a good run game could unlock their offensive potential and should be the team's first priority.

—Cayden Steele

compare passing game

Examples of running game in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Brewers have won back-to-back one-run games against a team that typically excels at winning them. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Rams defensive tackle Kobie Turner repeatedly plowed past him, which stalled the Eagles' run game. — ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

The play broke the dam for an offense — and particularly a run game — that last year looked pretty damn broken. — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 5 Oct. 2026

Their formula of winning — efficient quarterback play supported by a steady run game, and a defense that gets the ball back — is the kind of formula that gets teams to the Super Bowl. — Jeff Howe, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1910, in the meaning defined above