Dallas v Philadelphia

[Robert Goodman]

Originally Posted by AllPurposeGamer

NFL 2009 Rule Book

Rule 8, Article 2

Item 1: Illegal Passes. Any other forward pass by either team is illegal and is a foul by the passing team, including the following:

(a) A forward pass thrown when the passer is beyond the line of scrimmage.

Note: It is a forward pass from beyond the line of scrimmage if the passer's entire body and the ball are beyond the line of scrimmage when the ball is released,

You would think the "and the ball" part would be superfluous, unless you're carrying it on a string!

whether the passer is airborne or touching the ground. The penalty for a forward pass thrown from beyond the line is enforced from the spot where the ball is released.

So you do have to rule on the position of the ball at release, but I meant that it wasn't a critical thing where inches would likely matter, as in determining whether it was a forward pass. If you're off by a bit, it just moves the spot by that much, doesn't determine whether it was a foul.