Untimed down in Chargers game
spiderman77
Senior Member
What in the world was that all about? The refs said that the "kicking team illegally touched the ball" and therefore granted SD one more untimed play. All the Colts player did was pick up the ball and toss it to the ref after it had stopped (and after the clock went to 0:00).
Comments
It's the sneaky part of the rule. Anytime you "down" a punt, it is illegal touching. It is a 0 yard penalty, so it doesn't mean anything, unless it is the end of the game. Then you get an untimed down. You never see it because teams usually have someone back to field the punt, or if they don't, it is near their end zone and it goes thru the end zone.
So does that mean that if the receiving team is off sides and the kicking team "illegally" downs the ball that the penalties would offset?
It's like touching a kickoff before it goes 10 yards. It just kills the play. No one cares about it because this situation never comes up. I always stress players and coaches don't read the rule book. They need to. Teams find a little hole in the rule book(NE vs Balt) and people cry. Read the rule book.
Yes, even if the ball stops. There is nothing keeping the receiving team from picking the ball up after it stops. If the kicking team touches it but doesn't take control of it, the receiving team has a free ball. They can pick it up and run. If they lose yards or fumble the ball, they get it at the spot of the touch. If they return it for positive yards, they get the return.
No, it can't be used as an offset penalty.
Packers take advantage of ridiculous NFL rule to magically make kickoff go out of bounds
http://www.foxsports.com/nfl/story/packers-take-advantage-of-ridiculous-nfl-rule-to-magically-make-kickoff-go-out-of-bounds-092516
That fits with any other out of bounds rule. If you recover the ball touching the sideline, it is considered out of bounds. That rule stays true no matter what part of the field you are on. I love watching people that know the rules and find ways to use them. I wish I was watching when that happened. Smart move.