Baseball may be America's favorite pastime, says Howie, but football is America's passion. From the first kickoff of the preseason to the final seconds of the Super Bowl, you'll have a greater understanding of the game after you've read Football For Dummies. From the basics of the game (Are footballs really covered with pigskin? And what's a gridiron," anyway?) to offensive and defensive plays, armchair quarterbacks, and the art of staying fit, Long tells all. Plus, check out Howie's Part of Tens, with his hits on the ten greatest coaches, offensive and defensive players, and teams of all time -- along with a "Dream Team" roster and complete "Football Speak" glossary.

Amazon.com Review
At last, the Dummies series is tackling football. Former Raider all-pro defensive end and current Fox TV analyst Howie Long calls the signals, and if he doesn't always go deep--he's got a lot of ground to cover--at least he connects. With all its X's and O's, football is a complicated sport, and Long works hard to smooth the way: "Once you break through that initial fear of being overwhelmed by football and what you don't understand," he counsels, "I know everything else about the game, like dominoes, will fall into place." In his role as guide, Long plays those dominoes, from peewees to the pros to the fantasy leagues, explaining positions, analyzing offenses and defenses, and detailing strategies. As with all Dummies guides, the fun part is the "Part of Tens," the series of top-10 lists that dig in for the final chapter. He scores big with his inclusions of John Hannah and Hugh McElhenny among the greatest offensive players ever, but should be penalized for overemphasizing tight ends and forgetting the electricity that wide receivers bring to the game. This, of course, reflects a defensive end's natural bias; since they muck it up more with the hulkier tight ends, they simply let the speedballs fly by. --Jeff Silverman