American Football Penalties

In American football and Canadian football, a penalty is a sanction called against a team for a violation of the rules, called a foul. Officials initially signal penalties by tossing a bright yellow (American Football) or orange (Canadian football) colored "penalty flag" onto the field toward or at the spot of a foul. Many penalties result in moving the football toward the offending team's end zone, usually either 5, 10, or 15 yards, depending on the penalty. Most penalties against the defensive team also result in giving the offense an automatic first down, while a few penalties against the offensive team cause them to automatically lose a down. In some cases, depending on the spot of the foul, the ball is moved half the distance to the goal line rather than the usual number of yards, or the defense scores an automatic safety.

Rationale

Because football is a high-contact sport requiring a balance between offense and defense, many rules exist that regulate equality, safety, contact, and actions of players on each team. It is very difficult to always avoid violating these rules without giving up too much of an advantage. Thus, an elaborate system of fouls and penalties has been developed to "let the punishment fit the crime" and maintain a balance between following the rules and keeping a good flow of the game. Players and coaches are constantly looking for ways to find an advantage that stretches the limitations imposed by the rules. Also, the frequency and severity of fouls can make a large difference in the outcome of a game, so coaches are constantly looking for ways to minimize the number and severity of infractions committed by their players.

It is a common misconception that the term "penalty" is used to refer both to an infraction and the penal consequence of that infraction. A foul is a rule infraction for which a penalty is prescribed.

Signaling and announcing penalties

Officials initially signal fouls by tossing a bright yellow colored flag onto the field toward or at the spot of the foul. Because of this, broadcasters and fans often use the terms "flag" or "flag on the play" to refer to fouls during the game.

During a play, multiple officials may flag the same play, and multiple flags may be thrown for separate fouls on the same play. If applicable, the same official can signal additional fouls on a given play by throwing a beanbag or their hat. When officials throw a flag during a down, play does not stop until the ball becomes dead under normal conditions, as if there were no fouls.

Once the ball is dead, or immediately when a foul is called after a play is over or prior to a snap (since the ball is dead anyway), the referee, the official(s) who threw the flag(s) and other officials with a view of the play confer to come to a consensus on whether an infraction was actually committed, what it was, and who committed it. The final determination and assessment of the penalty is the sole responsibility of the referee. The referee then makes initial visual body signals to the press box (and crowd) indicating what fouls were committed and the team that committed them, the latter shown by extending the arm toward that team's end zone.

The referee then confers with the offended team's on-field captain to find out whether the offended team would rather decline the penalty and take the result of the play. In certain situations, the result of the play may be more advantageous to the offended team, especially, for example, if time is running out in the half and a 7-yard gain is a better option than a 5-yard penalty. However, there are certain scenarios where the referee may not have to confer with the team captain because the enforcement cannot be declined (such as a false start foul or other penalties called prior to the snap) or when the choice is fairly obvious (such as when the defense commits a foul during a play in which the offense scores a touchdown).

After any final conference, the referee then makes full visual signals describing the foul in detail, consisting of: the foul that was committed, the team that committed it, whether or not the opposing team chooses to decline it, and the resulting down or possession. In college football, the NFL and other professional leagues, and in some high school games, the referee also announces the fouls and their penalties over a wireless microphone to the members of the teams, the crowds in the stands, and viewers/listeners of the televised/radio broadcast of the game. In college and professional football, the referee will also give out the numbers of the players who committed the fouls. During these announcements over the microphone, the referee usually does not use names of the respective teams or their cities (however, in the Canadian Football League, they are announced by their respective city or province), but rather will use the generic terms "offense", "defense", "kicking team", "receiving team", etc. Some officials will refer to teams by their jersey color (e.g. "white", "red", "blue", etc.).

General types of penalty enforcement

The following are general types of penalty enforcement. Specific rules will vary depending on the league, conference, and/or level of football.

Most penalties result in replaying the down and moving the ball toward the offending team's end zone. The distance is usually either 5, 10, or 15 yards depending on the penalty. However, such penalties, when enforced, are capped at half the distance to the offending team's goal line.

Depending on the foul, the spot where the penalty is enforced may be at the spot of the foul; the previous spot (the line of scrimmage where the down began); the spot of the snap, fumble or backwards pass; or the succeeding spot (the line of scrimmage of the next down).

Some defensive penalties give the offense an automatic first down. Conversely, some offensive penalties result in loss of a down (loss of the right to repeat the down). If a penalty gives the offensive team enough yardage to gain a first down, they get a first down, as usual. However, if the offense commits a foul in its own end zone, the defense scores an automatic safety if the penalty is accepted.

If the defense commits a foul during the last play of any quarter, the offense usually has the option to accept the penalty and replay the down even with the clock showing 00:00 (i.e., an untimed play). Conversely, in most cases where the offense commits a foul during the last play in the half, the play in which the foul is committed is usually nullified and the half ends.

When a "double foul" occurs, when both teams commit a foul during a play, regardless of severity, the fouls are usually offset and the down is replayed. However, the two fouls must be committed in the same time frame. For instance, two fouls during the active play can offset, but a foul during the play and a personal foul after the whistle may not. Two personal fouls after the play can offset, although this is not often called. In the NFL, a major (15 yard) penalty by one team may not offset a minor (5 yard) penalty by the other team.

List of penalties

In the NFL, most defensive penalties result in an automatic first down. The exceptions are offside, encroachment, neutral zone infraction, delay of game, illegal substitution, calling excess timeouts, running into a kicker, and having more than 11 men on the field. In these cases, the appropriate yardage penalty is assessed. If the yardage penalty results in a first down, then a new set of downs is awarded; otherwise, there is a repeat of down.

In gridiron football, blocking below the waist is an illegal block, from any direction, below the waist by any defensive player or by an offensive player under certain situations, by any player after change of possession, with certain exceptions.
A block in the back is an action in which a blocker contacts a non-ball carrying member of the opposing team from behind and above the waist.
A chop block is an attempt by an offensive player to cut block (block at the thigh level or lower) a defensive player
In gridiron football, clipping is the act of a "throwing the body across the back of the leg of an eligible receiver or charging or falling into the back of an opponent below the waist after approaching him from behind, provided the opponent is not a runner."
Delay of game is an action in a sports game in which a player or team deliberately stalls the game, usually with the intention of using the delay to its advantage
In gridiron football, encroachment refers to when before the snap, a defensive player illegally crosses the line of scrimmage and makes contact with an opponent or has a clear path to the quarterback
Equipment violation is any player in the game without necessary safety equipment (mouthpiece, pads), without chin straps properly fastened or in violation of certain clothing rules (e.g. sock requirements in college)
The term "face mask" in the game is also used to refer to the foul of illegally touching the equipment. In most leagues, tackling or otherwise restraining a player by grabbing the face mask is illegal due to the risk of injury, and the penalty is severe, drawing 15 yards, and also a first down if committed by the defense. In high school, the penalty is only 5 yards if the act was considered to be "incidental."
False start is movement by an offensive player (other than the center) after he has taken a set position
Helmet-to-helmet collisions are occurrences in American football when two players' helmets make head-to-head contact with a high degree of force.
The horse-collar tackle is an American football maneuver in which a defender tackles another player by grabbing the back collar or the back-inside of an opponent's shoulder pads and pulling the ball carrier directly downward in order to pull his feet from underneath him
Illegal contact (defense) is making significant contact with a receiver after the receiver has advanced five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. The illegal contact is called only if the quarterback is still in pocket and the ball is still in his hands. This rule was adopted in 1978, and its enactment is regarded as contributing to the increase in passing efficiency the NFL has witnessed since that time.
Illegal formation is fewer than 7 players line up on the line of scrimmage (NFL/High School); more than four players in the backfield (NCAA only); eligible receivers fail to line up as the leftmost and rightmost players on the line in the NFL; or when five properly numbered ineligible players fail to line up on the line.
Illegal forward pass (offense) is a forward pass is thrown from past the line of scrimmage, after a change of possession, or when a second forward pass is thrown on the same play.
Illegal hands to the face is pushing or hitting a player on offense in the head or helmet
Illegal motion (offense) is a player in motion is moving forward at the time of the snap.
Illegal participation is twelve or more players participate during the play, because the extra players either are not detected before the snap or enter during the play. Once the down begins, no further players may enter the field and participate, even if there are fewer than 11 players. Illegal participation is also called when an offensive player goes out of bounds (unless forced out by contact by the defense) and returns during the play.
Illegal shift is a player is not in motion but is not set before the snap; more than one player is in motion at the snap; or after more than one player was moving (shifting), all eleven players have not been motionless for one second.
Substitution infraction/Illegal Substitution/"Too many men on the field" is the offense has twelve or more players in the huddle for a period of 3–5 seconds; or twelve or more players are in the formation before a play; or a player is attempting to leave the field as the ball is snapped; or an offensive player entering the field fails to step at least nine yards from the sideline (inside the field's yardage numbers) before the snap; or a player who has been suspended or disqualified attempts to enter the field of play.
Illegal touching of a forward pass (offense) is a forward pass first touches an ineligible receiver (an offensive lineman). If the ball is touched by the defenders first, any player may touch it.
Illegal touching of a free kick (special teams) is the ball, after the free kick, first touches a member of the kicking team prior to travelling 10 yards. This is most often seen on an onside kick where a member of the kicking team prematurely comes in contact with the ball in an attempt to recover it. Like illegal touching of a forward pass, if a defender (member of the receiving team) first touches the ball, any player may touch it. Note: in NFHS it is called 'first touching', not 'illegal touching'. It is also illegal touching for a kicking team player to touch a free kick after going out of bounds, unless the kick is touched by the receiving team.
Illegal touching of a scrimmage kick (special teams) is The ball, during the scrimmage kick, is touched by a kicking team player, unless the kick is touched by the receiving team or another member of the kicking team.
Illegal use of hands is Illegal use of the hands against a player on offense while attempting to ward off a block, cover a receiver, or tackle a ball carrier. There are several restrictions on how a defender may initiate contact.
Ineligible receiver downfield (offense) is an ineligible receiver is past the line of scrimmage prior to a forward pass. Ineligible receivers must wait until the pass is thrown beyond the line of scrimmage (or touched) before moving past the line of scrimmage. This exception has been added to accommodate the screen pass, where a receiver (most often a back, but sometimes a tight end or wide receiver) catches a ball behind the line of scrimmage behind a "screen" of offensive linemen.
Intentional grounding (offense) is A forward pass is thrown intentionally incomplete so that the passer avoids loss of yardage or to conserve time. Not assessed if the ball is spiked. If the quarterback has moved outside of the area between his offensive tackles (the "tackle box" or more commonly called "the pocket"), there is no foul for grounding the ball if the quarterback throws the ball past the line of scrimmage. High school is more restrictive: spiking the ball is only allowed if the quarterback is under center, and the quarterback may not legally throw the ball away when outside the "tackle box."
In gridiron football, holding is the illegal restraining of another player who is not in possession of the ball. Holding is banned in most football leagues because it does not allow fair play of the game and increases the risk for injury.
Leaping (defense) is a defender at least one yard in front of the line of scrimmage running forward and leaping in an attempt to block a field goal or a point-after try lands on other players on either team. The penalty is not called if the defender was within one yard of the line of scrimmage at the time of the snap.
Neutral Zone Infraction (defense) is before the snap, a defensive player (most often a lineman) jumps into the neutral zone and "startles" an offensive player, causing him to false start.
Offside (offense or defense) is A player is on the wrong side of the line of scrimmage when the ball is snapped. This foul occurs simultaneously with the snap. Unlike offensive players, defensive players are not compelled to come to a set position before the snap. If a defender jumps across the line but gets back to his side before the snap, there is no foul. In the case of an offside foul, play is not stopped, and the foul is announced at the conclusion of the play. Media covering the games call it a "free play" for the offense, as the non-offending team may decline the penalty and take the yardage gained on the play (and when the play works against them, like a turnover to the opposing team, the non-offending team can accept the penalty and retake possession of the ball) - unlike in the case of a false start foul against the offense, whereupon the play is immediately stopped by the officials.

This foul is almost always committed by the defense (any offensive player that moves into the neutral zone after setting would be charged with a false start). However, it is possible for the offense to commit this foul. If an offensive player lines up in the neutral zone, an offside foul will be called against the offense.
Palpably unfair act is called as necessary in the case of any illegal action that the officials deem has clearly and indisputably deprived a team of a score. For example, if a player or other person not legally in the game at the start of a given play comes onto the field to tackle a player apparently en route to a touchdown, the team that would have scored is awarded the touchdown. This can also conceivably (explicitly in high-school rule books) be invoked in cases where the defense commits repeated intentional infractions very close to its own goal line (the half-the-distance rule making the consequence of such infractions otherwise insignificant).
Pass interference (offense or defense) is Making physical contact with an intended receiver (intentional physical contact in NFL), after the ball has been thrown and before it has been touched by another player, in order to hinder or prevent him from catching a forward pass. (On offense, the restriction begins at the snap and continues until the ball is touched in order to prevent receivers from blocking defenders away from a passed ball.)
Personal foul (offense or defense) is a conduct- or safety-related infraction. Includes unnecessary roughness, such as hitting a ball carrier after he is already out of bounds, "piling on" a ball carrier who is already down, or violent contact with an opponent who is away from and out of the play. If the officials decide that the action was particularly flagrant, the player in question can be ejected from the game.
Roughing the passer (defense) is a defender continues an effort to tackle or "hit" a passer after the passer has already thrown a pass. (In the NFL, a defender is allowed to take one step after the ball is thrown; a defender is penalized if he hits the passer having taken two or more steps after the ball leaves the passer's hand, or if the passer is hit above the shoulders, or if the passer is targeted using the crown of the helmet.)
Roughing the kicker (special teams) is a defender, having missed an attempt to block a kick, tackles the kicker or otherwise runs into the kicker in a way that might injure the kicker or his vulnerable extended kicking leg. This protection is also extended to the holder of a place kick.
Roughing the snapper (special teams) is on a punt or field goal attempt, the long snapper is allowed to regain his balance and assume a protective position before he is contacted by the defense.
Running into the kicker (special teams) is on a kicking play where the defense fails to touch ("block") the kicked ball, the defense runs into the kicker/punter. If such an act occurs but is not intentional, this foul is assessed. If intentional, the personal foul of roughing the kicker is assessed instead (see above).
Sideline infraction is a player is outside of the team box, a coach is outside the coaches' box (along the sideline in front of the team box), or too many coaches are in the coaches' box. (In high school, the penalty for a coach on the field of play is unsportsmanlike conduct, not a sideline infraction.)
Spearing (offense or defense) is tackling or otherwise contacting an opponent with one's helmet. (This technique is illegal because of the risk of neck injuries to the tackler.)
Targeting is a defensive player tackles with the crown of his helmet, by initiating contact to the opponent's head above the player's neck, or makes helmet-to-helmet collision.
Tripping is a player trips another player with the lower leg. Note that tripping the runner is legal under NCAA and NFHS rules.
Unsportsmanlike conduct is any person (usually a player but occasionally a coach and very rarely one or more spectators) acts or speaks in a manner deemed to be intentionally harmful or especially objectionable by the game officials, or by rule. Unsportsmanlike conduct is a non-contact foul; if contact is involved it becomes a personal foul. Examples include verbal abuse of officials, and taunting, which, since 2004 in the NFL, has included any "prolonged and premeditated celebrations" by players (prior to that year the latter carried only a 5-yard penalty). Later rules included using the football or end zone pylon in a touchdown celebration. If the officials decide that the action was particularly flagrant, the player, coach or spectator in question may be ejected from the game. In high school, if a single player, coach or spectator commits two unsportsmanlike conduct fouls, the person in question should automatically be ejected.

Intentional fouls

In certain situations, a team may intentionally commit a foul in order to receive a penalty that they see as advantageous:

A delay of game penalty may be sought intentionally in order to back up the line of scrimmage prior to a punt to allow for a larger punting field.
Defensive pass interference may be committed in or near the end zone toward the end of a game in order to prevent a touchdown. This would place the ball at or near the goal line with a first down, and give the defense of a team that is slightly ahead a chance to prevent a touchdown that would put the opponent ahead. Some leagues have considered instituting palpably unfair act calls in these situations and calling touchdowns to prevent this from occurring.
Since a penalty will stop the clock, a team may commit a foul in order to stop the clock when no timeouts are available. Some leagues have instituted a 10-second runoff in order to negate the ability to do this.

The ten-second runoff rule

In the NFL and NCAA, a 10-second runoff is assessed if any of the following acts are committed by the offense in the last minute of either half:

A foul by either team that prevents the ball from being snapped
Intentional grounding
Illegal forward pass beyond the line of scrimmage
Throwing a backwards pass out of bounds
Spiking or throwing the ball away after a down (unless after a touchdown)
Any other intentional act that causes the clock to stop

The 10-second penalty does not apply if:

The clock is stopped when the ball is set for play and will not start until the ball is snapped.
If the team on offense has timeouts and elects to use one in lieu of the runoff.
If the defense declines the runoff (which prevents the offense from committing fouls to intentionally run out the clock). Note that the team on defense may elect to decline the runoff while accepting the yardage penalty, but may not do the reverse.

Moreover, the game clock will run once the ball is placed. If such a runoff occurs with 10 seconds or less remaining, the half automatically ends. Since the enforcement of the 10-second runoff, seven regular season NFL games ended automatically due to this rule: 2005 Arizona-St. Louis, 2009 Cincinnati-Green Bay, 2011 Chicago-Oakland, 2012 Washington-Philadelphia, 2012 New England-Arizona (which cost New England the chance to attempt a field goal at the end of the half in a game they eventually lost by two points), 2014 St. Louis-Tampa Bay (which cost Tampa Bay a chance to attempt a game-winning field goal), and 2015 New England-New York Jets (which cost the Jets an attempt to throw a Hail Mary and force the game to overtime). A pre-season game in 2006 between Houston and Kansas City had the first half end automatically due to an intentional grounding foul with less than 10 seconds left. A 2013 divisional playoff game between the New Orleans Saints and the Seattle Seahawks also ended on a 10-second runoff after Saints wide receiver Marques Colston threw an illegal forward pass.

Starting in 2011, the NCAA adopted a similar 10-second penalty rule for college football. Like the NFL rule, it applies in the last minute of each half, but the NCAA rule differs in that it applies to fouls by either side that cause a clock stoppage. Like the NFL rule, the team that benefits from the penalty may elect to take both the yardage and the runoff, the yardage alone, or neither (but not the runoff in lieu of yards). The penalized team may elect to take a charged timeout in order to avoid the runoff.

The new NCAA rule was passed in response to the end of the 4th quarter in the 2010 Music City Bowl. In that game, the North Carolina Tar Heels were down 20-17 at the end of the 4th quarter and because they had no timeouts, they spiked the ball to stop the clock with 1 second left while too many men were on the field due to confusion about whether the field goal unit needed to come on the field. Because college football did not yet have the 10-second runoff, UNC was penalized 5 yards but was still able to kick the field goal to send the game to overtime, and would wind up beating Tennessee 30-27 in double overtime. Ironically, the new rule would not have saved Tennessee, because the Tar Heels' foul came after the snap, which would not have triggered the runoff.

SPORTS

American Football

Game play in American football consists of a series of downs, individual plays of short duration, outside of which the ball is dead or not in play. These can be plays from scrimmage – passes, runs, punts, or field goal attempts (from either a place kick or a drop kick) – or free kicks such as kickoffs and fair catch kicks. Substitutions can be made between downs, which allows for a great deal of specialization as coaches choose the players best suited for each particular situation. During a play, each team should have no more than 11 players on the field, and each of them has specific tasks assigned for that specific play.