Wow, lots of good thoughts in this thread. Here's what I've gotten out of it so far:
[still NF rules]
- Can you have ineligibles downfield on an illegal forward pass?
- Can you have illegal touching on an illegal forward pass?
I'm going to agree with Bob M. and say no, since eligibility restrictions apply only to legal forward passes. I've a hunch the rulemakers "want" illegal touching to still be possible, but the rules are definitely not written that way.
The question that I don't have a definitive answer for yet is this:
- If an illegal pass is thrown from the end zone and falls incomplete, can you ever have anything other than a safety?
Right now, my answer on this is also no. I read 10-5-4 as making it an automatic safety no matter what the disposition of the penalty. Also, since this is a running play, and the end of the run is where the pass was thrown, the basic spot is in the end zone. Even if the foul for an illegal pass is declined, the basic spot for other fouls is in the end zone.
Now, if you have a foul like illegal motion that's simultaneous with the snap (or through some bizarre twist, the play ends with a touchback), the second argument doesn't hold up. But I still think you end up with a safety.