downing a punt???????????// spot..

[Suudy]

Originally posted by theknightswhosay
So the kicking team could touch it and then the receiving team can still pick it and run with it, as long as the kicking team never possesses the ball? What if the kicking team touches it and then it hits a member of the receiving team, can the kicking team then pick it up and run with it? Or does it matter if the kicking team caused the contact with the receiving team? Do you know what the NFL rule is?

I don't know the NFL rule.

And waltjp is right, it is R's ball at the spot of first touching. However, K cannot advance a kick beyond the NZ, so the ball is dead once possessed.

And it does matter if K blocked or pushed R into the ball. Such touching is ignored.

Note that the right to first touching is cancelled on a foul by R after the touching.

But this does bring up a question. Suppose K bats the ball away from R's endzone into K. Then K recovers. I know that K can take the ball at the spot of first touching. However, let's spice it up a bit.

K's ball, 4th and 10 from K's 50. K1 punts and as the ball is bounding towards R's endzone, K2 bats the ball away from the endzone at R's 5. The batted ball striks R1 and K2 recovers at R's 6. After the touching, R2 blocks K3 in the back.

Ruling?

I think it is K's ball. Since R touched the kick, and he wasn't blocked or pushed into the ball, K can recover. But I'm not sure where. Since R fouled after the first touching, R's right to the spot of first touching is cancelled. And this is a PSK foul, but must it be declined in order to keep the ball? If so, K's ball, 1st and 10 from R's 6.