For American football
For American football, Nordic curl rates well ahead on our research criteria: more injury protection, easier to learn and fit in.
Trap bar deadlift carries over more directly to American football.
Both are good choices that build different things for American football, so a plan can use both.
The research score comes from these, scored by hand from the studies. Lifter scores appear once an exercise has 10 ratings. How scores work
Nordic Curl. Hamstring strains are common in any sprint sport. Programmes with Nordics have cut them by up to half.
Trap Bar Deadlift. Heavy leg and hip strength with a lower learning curve than the barbell deadlift.
For soccer, Nordic curl rates well ahead on our research criteria: more injury protection, easier to learn and fit in.
For running, trap bar deadlift rates higher on our research criteria: more carry-over to running. Nordic curl is easier to learn and fit in.
For basketball, trap bar deadlift rates higher on our research criteria: more carry-over to basketball. Nordic curl is easier to learn and fit in.
For American football, Nordic curl rates well ahead on our research criteria: more injury protection, easier to learn and fit in. Trap bar deadlift carries over more directly to American football. Both are good choices that build different things for American football, so a plan can use both.
Trap bar deadlift is easier: it’s easy to learn, while Nordic curl takes some practice.
Nordic curl needs no equipment, so you can do it anywhere. Trap bar deadlift needs a trap bar, so for most people it’s a gym exercise.
Nordic curl: it rates Excellent for injury protection in our research rubric, against Good for trap bar deadlift.