Illegal Forward Pass
ARTICLE 2. A forward pass is illegal if:
a. It is thrown by a Team A player whose entire body is beyond the neutral zone when the ball is released.
b. It is thrown by a Team B player.
c. It is thrown after team possession has changed during the down.
d. It is the second forward pass during the same down.
e. It is thrown from in or behind the neutral zone after a ball carrier’s entire body and the ball have been beyond the neutral zone.
PENALTY [a-e]—Five yards from the spot of the foul; also loss of down if by Team A before team possession changes during a scrimmage down [S35 and S9].
Approved Ruling 3-4-3 IV. A ball carrier throws a forward pass while beyond the neutral zone to conserve time. RULING: Penalty—Five yards from the spot of the foul and loss of down. The clock starts on the ready-for-play signal (Rule 7-3-2 Penalty). Note: If there is less than one minute remaining in the half, this foul comes under the 10-second runoff rule (Rule 3-4-4).
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 II. Late in either half with more than one minute remaining, A10 is unable to locate an open receiver. To conserve time, he throws a forward pass that is incomplete where there is no eligible Team A player. RULING: Illegal forward pass, intentional grounding. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the foul. The clock will start on the ready-for-play signal (Rule 3-3-2e-14 and 3-4-3).
f. The passer to conserve time throws the ball directly to the ground (1) after the ball has already touched the ground; or (2) not immediately after controlling the ball.
g. The passer to conserve time throws the ball forward into an area where there is no eligible Team A receiver.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 II. Late in either half with more than one minute remaining, A10 is unable to locate an open receiver. To conserve time, he throws a forward pass that is incomplete where there is no eligible Team A player. RULING: Illegal forward pass, intentional grounding. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the foul. The clock will start on the ready-for-play signal (Rule 3-3-2e-14 and 3-4-3).
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 III. On third down near the end of either half, potential field goal holder A4 muffs the snap and A4 or potential kicker A3 recovers the ball and immediately throws it forward to the ground. RULING: Illegal forward pass for intentional grounding; not a valid attempt to conserve time. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the foul. 10-second runoff option for Team B (Rule 3-4-4). Clock starts on the ready-for-play signal (Rules 3-3-2e-14 and 3-4-3) if the 10-second runoff is accepted.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 IV. The ball is snapped over the head of quarterback A12, who is in the “shotgun’’ formation. A12 recovers the ball and immediately throws it forward to the ground. RULING: Illegal forward pass for intentional grounding; not a valid attempt to conserve time. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the foul. Clock starts on the ready-for-play signal (Rules 3-3-2e-14 and 3-4-3).
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 V. On third down near the end of the half, A1 muffs the snap. A1 or A4 catches the muffed ball and immediately throws it forward into the ground. RULING: Legal play.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 VI. On third down near the end of the half, A1—positioned seven yards behind the snapper—catches the snap and immediately throws the ball forward to the ground. RULING: Legal play.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 VII. With seconds remaining in a half and the ball ready for play, Team A quickly lines up and the ball is legally snapped to quarterback A12, who throws the ball forward directly to the ground. Team A’s formation was not legal at the snap. When the ball becomes dead, two seconds show on the game clock. RULING: Illegal formation. Penalty—Five yards from the previous spot. The clock starts on the snap.
h. The passer to conserve yardage throws the ball forward into an area where there is no eligible Team A receiver.
[Exception: It is not a foul if the passer is or has been outside the tackle box and throws the ball so that it crosses or lands beyond the neutral zone or neutral zone extended (Rule 2-19-3). This applies only to the player who controls the snap or the resulting backward pass and does not relinquish possession to another player before throwing the forward pass.]
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 I. Quarterback A10, who is not outside the tackle box and is attempting to save yardage, intentionally throws a desperation forward pass that falls incomplete where there is no eligible Team A receiver. RULING: Intentional grounding. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the foul. The clock starts on the snap (Rule 3-3-2d-4) unless Rule 3-4-4 applies.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 VIII. Quarterback A10 sprints toward a sideline and is outside the tackle box when he throws a legal forward pass that is batted down by a defensive lineman and lands behind the neutral zone. RULING: Legal play. Without the batting the ball would have landed beyond the neutral zone, so A10 has satisfied the spirit of the rule.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 IX. Third and 5 at the A-40. QB A12 drops back in the pocket to pass. Under a heavy rush he throws a backward pass to back A22 who carries the ball outside the tackle box. About to be tackled, A22 at the A-35 throws a forward pass that crosses the neutral zone and lands in an area 20 yards away from the nearest Team A eligible receiver. RULING: Foul, intentional grounding. The tackle-box rule exception applies only to the player who controls the snap or the resulting backward pass. Loss of down at the spot of the foul. Fourth and 10 at the A-35. (Rule 7-3-2h Exc.)
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 X. Quarterback A12 is in a shotgun formation. He muffs the backward pass from the snapper and the ball is picked up by A63 inside the tackle box. Under a heavy rush, A63 gets outside the tackle box and throws the ball incomplete beyond the line of scrimmage. RULING: Legal play. A63 controlled the backward pass that resulted from the snap. (Rule 7-3-2h Exc.)
PENALTY [f-h]—Loss of down at the spot of the foul [S36 and S9].
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 XI. Second and 10 at the A-40. In a shotgun formation A11 takes the backward pass from the snapper and hands the ball off to back A44. A44 takes a few steps toward the line of scrimmage and then throws a backward pass to A11, who is still inside the tackle box. Avoiding tacklers, A11 scrambles outside the tackle box, and unable to find an open receiver, at the A-35 he throws the ball toward an area where there are no eligible receivers, and it lands out of bounds beyond the neutral zone. RULING: Illegal forward pass. Loss of down at the A-35; third and 15. A11 loses the right to throw the ball away legally because he relinquishes possession before passing it.
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 XII. Third and 10 at the A-30. Quarterback A11 drops back to pass. About to be tackled at the A-20, he throws the ball forward to an area where there are no eligible receivers. Tackle A77 catches the pass at the A-28 and is tackled at the A-32. RULING: Illegal forward pass; loss of down at the spot of the pass. Fourth and 20 at the A-20. This is “intentional grounding” since A11 throws the ball into an area where there are no eligible Team A receivers. Note that this is not illegal touching by A77, because the rule for illegal touching applies only to a legal forward pass. (Rule 7-3-11)
Approved Ruling 7-3-2 XIII. Quarterback A11 drops back to pass and scrambles outside the tackle box. He fumbles the ball, which bounces back up into his hands. He then passes the ball forward, and it lands beyond the neutral zone in an open area where there are no eligible receivers with an opportunity to make a catch. RULING: Legal play, since A11 did not relinquish possession to another player.
