NFL Rules

by cashless on Nov 23, 2008 4:38 PM PST Comment 11 comments

I had an idea occur to me while watching the Cardinals game wind down. I'm probably not the first to think of this.

If a player catches the ball and does a backward lateral out of bounds, would that be legal? Or is there a rule against that to keep players from using it to stop the clock as they try to come from behind?

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I don't think it's illegal

but why would someone want to do that?

by John Morgan on Nov 23, 2008 5:46 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

No Timeouts...

Lets say you have 30 seconds, need to score a FG, you catch a 15-25 yard ball but are gonna get tackled before the sideline.

Not as something that get used as a trick over and over again, but as a smart decision to lose a couple yards to protect your net gain and the clock at the same time.

Just more of a knowledge question than anything. Not for a specific instance that I saw.

by cashless on Nov 23, 2008 5:59 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I think you could do it.

Seems risky, figuring it’s the heat of the moment, you’re going to get tackled so there’s at least one defender near you, you’re also pretty far from the sideline or you’d just attempt to get out of bounds…Sounds like something the coach would kill you for.

by John Morgan on Nov 23, 2008 6:11 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You are probably right.

But in contrast to the close to the vest style of Mike Holmgren, a coach that is trying to do anything to win would benefit from knowing the rules inside and out and knowing what types of things they could attempt.

But because of the way you can’t predict coverage, a throw that would be far enough to benefit couldn’t be a sure thing, I don’t think it could be a called play, but more of an individual play. A lot of risk even mentioning it to players and making it available to them, without much chance of benefit.

by cashless on Nov 23, 2008 7:48 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Two points:

1) If you are about to be tackled it would be very risky.
2) If the situation is extremely desperate, i.e. seconds remain… why not try lateraling it to a teammate, which is usually what they do.

by michaelfox99 on Nov 24, 2008 6:36 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Depends on the situation.

If you need a TD then #2 is a no-brainer.

by cashless on Nov 24, 2008 2:21 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

seems to be very limited circumstances

end of the game, need a field goal, no timeouts left, the throw is far enough and the clock is low enough that spiking isn’t an option, you’re close enough to the sideline to throw it out but far enough that you can’t step out.

If I were an NFL coach I’d probably just practice the 2 minute drill more and try to avoid being in that situation in the first place.

by Will Kier on Nov 24, 2008 12:34 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

No.

Can a player, unable to run out-of-bounds, lateral the ball out-of-bounds to stop the clock?

If the backward pass is thrown out-of-bounds during the last minute of play during the second or fourth quarter in order to stop the clock, a five-yard penalty for delay of game and a 10-second runoff is assessed. If this act occurs at any other time during the game, no penalty is called and the clock is started when the ball is made ready for play by the referee.

Also:

Action to Conserve Time

A team is not permitted to conserve time inside of one minute of either half by committing any of the following acts: fouls by either team that prevent the snap (i.e., false start, encroachment, etc.), intentional grounding, an illegal forward pass thrown from beyond the line of scrimmage with the intent to conserve time, throwing a backward pass out of bounds with the intent to conserve time, and any other intentional foul that causes the clock to stop.

Penalty: Loss of five yards unless a larger distance penalty is applicable. When actions referred to above are committed by the offensive team with the clock running, officials will run 10 seconds off the game clock before permitting the ball to be put in play on the ready for play signal. The clock will start on the ready for play signal. If the offensive team has timeouts remaining, it will have the option of using a timeout in lieu of a 10-second runoff. If the action is by the defense, the play clock will be reset to 40 seconds and the game clock will start on the ready signal. If the defense has time outs remaining, it will have the option of using a time out in lieu of the game clock being started.

by lemonverbena on Nov 24, 2008 5:22 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Thank you.

You actually answered my question. And gave me a good link.

by cashless on Nov 24, 2008 11:34 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Good catch

Didn’t want to wade into the NFL rulebook again.

by John Morgan on Nov 25, 2008 9:42 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The only time I've seen this called (or almost called)

was actually in a USFL game years ago, where a runner waited until he was contacted, and made some over-the-top flailing motion to fumble the ball about 5 yards out of bounds. I can’t remember if it was allowed or not, but the officials had to huddle up for a long time to try and determine if the contact had any bearing whatsoever on the “fumble”.

by marc w on Nov 25, 2008 10:53 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs