Quote:
Originally posted by l3will
Quote:
Originally posted by parepat
Quote:
Originally posted by mcrowder
parepat - you can block anyone, anywhere, anytime... UNLESS it's prohibited by a rule. Blocking, tackling, etc are LEGAL, unless prohibited by a rule.
The rule listed above tells you what you can't do to a receiving team member WHILE THE BALL IS IN FLIGHT. When the ball is no longer in flight, normal rules apply.
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What rule are you talking about. I don't see any rule that deals with fair catch that limits action "while the ball is in flight".
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You need to start with Rule 2-4... 1 and 2... A catch is the act of establishing player possession of a live ball which is in flight....
Then rule 2-9-1 A fair catch is a catch by a receiver of a free kick ....
Then just to contrast... look at rule 2-34 ... A recovery is gaining possession of a live ball after it strikes the ground...
So once the ball touches the ground, R can no longer make a
"catch", so protection ends... since he can no longer make a fair catch. R can only recover, but since R made a fair catch signal... R can no longer advance.... rule 6-5-5 ...
No receiver may advance the ball after a valid or invalid fair-catch signal has been given by any member of the receiving team.
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Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Just because he can't make a fair catch doesn't mean his protection ends. You can quote as many inapplicable rules as you want, it doesn't change the facts. As I said there is no rule that tells us when the protection ends. There is no case book play that tells us when the protection ends. There is a rule however, (6-5-1) that tells us that the (fair catcher-new word) can't block until the kick has ended. So we know that in exchange for fair catch protection, the fair catcher is restricted. If we are going to read into the rules (which I am not) it is far more sensible that his protection would be equal to his restriction (ie protection until the kick ends... not until the kick hits the ground).
Otherwise we are back to this situation
Fair catcher (FC) gives a valid fair catch signal but does not catch the ball. One microsecond after the ball hits the gound, FC is hit so hard that his head pops off and roles to a stop at the feet of the backjudge. The hit is other wise legal in all respects.
ANSWER; according to some... legal play.
I respectfully disagree.