Safety?

[tchaap]

This scenario has not happend to me yet but I thought of it today as I was going through some plays in my mind.

A's ball, 1/10 on their own 5. A1(qb) drops back to pass in to the endzone. B1 flushes A1 out of the pocket and chases him down. A1, is trying to get out of the enzone to avoid the safety. A1 is hit and as he is going down stretches the ball out over the plane of the goal line just before his knee hits in the endzone(just like he was stretching for a td but in reverse)

Safety or ball on the 1 foot line where it was when his knee hit? A's ball 2nd down.

I would think safety but I am a first year wingman and appreciate the great comments on this board.

[CKRef]

This would not be a safety. See definition of Dead Ball Spot 2-40-3.

Just remember that to avoid the safety in your play, the entire ball must be out in the field of play. If any part of the ball is still touching the goal line - safety. Just like any part of the ball breaking the goal line plane going in makes it a touchdown.

[Edited by CKRef on Oct 2nd, 2003 at 10:08 PM]

[sm_bbcoach]

Originally posted by tchaap
This scenario has not happend to me yet but I thought of it today as I was going through some plays in my mind.

A's ball, 1/10 on their own 5. A1(qb) drops back to pass in to the endzone. B1 flushes A1 out of the pocket and chases him down. A1, is trying to get out of the enzone to avoid the safety. A1 is hit and as he is going down stretches the ball out over the plane of the goal line just before his knee hits in the endzone(just like he was stretching for a td but in reverse)

Safety or ball on the 1 foot line where it was when his knee hit? A's ball 2nd down.

I would think safety but I am a first year wingman and appreciate the great comments on this board.

Remember, the ball is placed at the spot is is at when the knee hits the ground. Now, I explain it like this: Think of a big bubble streatching across the goal line (coming form the field of play into the end zone.) The ball is a needle. IF any part of teh ball (needle) touches the goal line (bubble) it pops. IF it pops, TD. On a saftey question, think in reverse; if any part of the needle is still inthe bubble, it will pop, saftey. Hope this helps.

[Rich]

A clarification to the last post. The ball is placed at the spot where the BALL is when a runner is down or when forward progress is stopped. The ball needs to be all the way out, but if there's any doubt give the benefit to the offense.

Rich

[Warrenkicker]

This is also the only time that the team with possession of the ball can move the ball down the field without snapping the ball. Say the QB to get the ball out of the endzone and the long axis of the ball was parallel to the goal line, you always turn the ball to mark it ready for play by having the long axis of the ball perpendicular to the goal line with the leading point of the ball no farther up field than it was when it became dead. If then the back end of the ball is on the goalline you should move the ball forward until it is completely off of the goalline.

Not the easiest thing to describe so just go to 5.3.4 Situation A in the Case Book.

[PSU213]

...and don't listen to Brent Jones on the subject. I don't know if NFL rules are different than NF rules on this (my guess is, for once, they are not), but he came up with this one during the Pittsburgh/Tenn. game this past weekend: "If the tip of that ball is able to cross the plane of the goal line going out, it is not a safety."