The Detailed Rules of Football

GRID-IRON

American Football is generally played on a grass field that is 120 meters long and 50 meters wide.
These 100x50 meters are used as the playing field. The additional 20 meters of the entire length are used on both ends of the field to mark 10x50 meters.
These areas are called „Endzones.“ Both teams are given an endzone to defend. They have to be defended by the “defense” of a team. The field is divided up using lines painted on the field. They aid in orientation for the fans, referees and the players themselves.
 
The American-Football Field is divided up into zones that are 10 yards long. Including endzones, there are a total of 12 of these zones. The line that denotes the start of the endzone is known as the Goaline. The middle line of the field is the 50-Yard line.

All additional lines are marked with easily visible numbers. In the professional and college leagues these lines are painted directly on the field, otherwise they can be found on signs on the sidelines. These lines give the American Football Field it’s name, the „Grid Iron.“  The term “the chess field” can also be used because football is an extremely strategic game.

The Game

American football centers itself mostly around the notion of gaining yards, or stopping you opponent from doing such.  The game starts with a Kick Off where the ball is placed on the 35-yardline and then kicked in the opponent’s direction. At this point the ball is caught by the returner and then he attempts to carry the ball as far as possible into the kicking team’s direction.  Wherever the returner is brought to the ground, the first drive (First Down) of the offense (the team in possession of the ball) will start here.

The Offense

The offense has four tries (Downs) to advance the ball 10 yards.  There is the terminolgy, “1st and 10“ (This means that this is the 1st try and there are still 10 yards to get).
For every „Down“ there are two different types of plays that can be executed: A Run Play or a Pass Play. In both incidences the center gives the ball through his legs to the Quarterback who is standing behind him.  He then in turn passes the ball downfield to a Wide Receiver (Pass Play) or he gives the ball to a Runningback (Run Play) who then tries to advance the ball as far up field as possible.

The Defense

The defending team of course tries to deny the advancement of the ball. Ball carriers get tackled and attempts to intercept the passes are made. A try ends when the ball touches the ground  (in the case of a pass play) or a ball carrier is brought to the ground (as in a run play). If the offense is successful in gaining the 10 yards within the four tries, they receive a fresh set of four downs.  It continues in this fashion until they can’t go anymore, or they score points. If the offense is not successful in gaining the yards and it is fourth down, there are two possibilities. Either you attempt a fourth down try and risk losing the ball or you can either punt the ball or try a field goal.

The Punt

A Punt in a way frees the team up. Similar to the Kick-Off the punting team tries to kick the ball as far into the opponent’s territory as they can. An opponent catches the ball and then tries to return it as far as possible, just like in the Kick-Off. The possession of the ball is now traded, however it is not the same as if it were an unsuccessful attempt on 4th down. 

The Fieldgoal

Should the offensive team be close enough to the opponents endzone, a Fieldgoal can be attempted. In this case the kicker tries to kick the ball through the uprights of the field goal post.  If he makes it, the team gets 3 points. If he misses, the opponent then gets the ball at the spot of the kick with a 1st and 10.

Length of the Game

A professional football game lasts 4x15 minutes (in Austrua 4 x 12min) and there are 11 men on the field per team.

OFFENSE

Quarterback (QB)
The Playmaker. The plays are either sent in from the sideline to him or he determines them himself, he signals the start of every play, is the passer, gives the ball to the running back or runs the ball himself.

Fullback (RB)
The full back is used most often when only a few yards are needed. More often he is used as a blocker to clear the way for the halfback. He usually leads the way through a hole and picks up the first man who comes to him.

Halfback (RB)
These players are normally a little smaller and faster than the fullback. He runs with the ball, but will also catch the ball. Along with the fullback, he can help protect the Quarterback in a passing play.

Wide Receiver (WR)
The main objective for the WR is to catch the ball.  He must however also be able to block and run with the ball.

Tight End (TE)
He lines up next to the tackle and fulfils a double function. On one hand he has to be able to block as an extra lineman, but also be able to run pass routes and catch the ball.

Center (C)
The center is the anchor of the offensive line and has the duty of giving the ball to the QB or to the kicker in the form of what is called a „Snap.“

Guards / Tackles (OL)
These two positions are aligned to the left and the right of the center and complete the offensive line. They are always the strongest and the biggest players and have the responsibility of making holes for the runningbacks or of protecting the QB in passing plays.

DEFENSE

Defense Tackles / Defense Ends / Nose Guards
The Defensive Line (DL)
These players line up across from the offensive line. They attempt to stop the running plays or to break through the line and bring the QB to the ground. Typically there are three to six of these players.

Linebacker (LB)
The linebackers support the defensive line by tackling the ball carrier. In passing plays they are responsible for receivers who are running routes behind the defensive line. They may also drop into coverage for deeper routes as well.

Cornerbacks (CB)
They are responsible for covering and defending the wide receivers. They aren’t allowed to tackle the WRs until they catch the ball.

Strong Safety (S)
He lines up on the side where the tight end is lined up. He plays however typically at a 10 yard depth. In the event the tight end runs a route, the safety has to cover him. Otherwise he is there for additional run support.

Free Safety (S)
The last man. He has to be in position to be able to bring to the ground anyone who has broken through the defensive players in front of him.

The Referees - „REFS“       

Even though at times it may appear to be so, not everything goes in American Football. A very detailed set of rules makes sure that football is a hard game, but not a brutal one.

Seven Refs
For this reason seven refs are to be found on the field.  Due to their black and white shirts and white pants they are often referred to as “zebras.”
The right to make a decision is held only by the head referee. He wears a white hat while all others wear black ones.
Because so much happens in a short time, the refs all have different responsibilities.
What do the yellow handkerchiefs mean?
In the event of a foul, the referee will throw a yellow handkerchief (flag) when possible at the spot of the foul. At the end of the play the head referee explains what they saw. He determines the penalty and in the form of a hand signal informs the fans.
There are different types of fouls that can result in 5, 10 or 15 yards penalties. With some fouls even a down can be taken away. In certain situations a player can even be kicked out of the game (ejected).

Hand Signals from the Ref.

First Down the offensive team advanced the ball the required 10 yards and now reieve a fresh set of four downs.
Safety The offensive team’s ball carrier is tackled in his own endzone and the defense is awarded 2 points.
TimeOut  The clock and action is stopped.
TouchDown Is the carrying of the ball into the endzone either by a ball carrier or a pass.  
Incomplete Pass is a pass that was not caught or brought under control.
No Flag After a flag is thrown, a decision is made that there was in fact no penalty on that particular play.

Football dictionary/ - expressions

All Star Team:
The All-Star team is a team made up of the best players in a league or region. These teams never truly play with the exception of one game at the end of the season where two All-Star teams will square off against one another. The most prominent All-Star teams are from the two conferences of the NFL (AFC and NFC).  A game called the Pro Bowl is played every year in Honolulu.

Zone Blocking:
This is a strategy used by offensive players that have them blocking in a particular zone as opposed to blocking a certain man.  Main thing here is stopping defensive players from breaking through.

Zone Defense:
Zone coverage used against pass plays. Every player is responsible for a particular zone and he must make sure no receiver catches a ball in this area.

Astroturf:
An artificial playing surface that takes the place of natural grass. In recent years great strides have been made in improving the quality of this surface.

Audible:
As per the commando of the QB, based on something he sees in the defense, the QB can change the offensive play at the line of scrimmage.

Backward/Lateral Pass:
A pass to the side or backwards. Backwards passes are allowed, but only seldom used. The reason for this is if the ball is not caught by the intended receiver, the opponent can recover the ball and take over possession.

Batting:
The swatting away of the ball when a pass is in route to a receiver.

Blitz:
A defensive play where several players storm to the QB and try to either tackle him in the backfield or impede the pass.

Bowl:
The term used for a finale in college football (Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, etc.) In the NFL, there are only the Super and Pro Bowls.

Blocking:
The key to the game of football. A legal block takes the form of the pushing and shoving of an opponent out of a certain area. In the case of running plays, the line tries to create a hole for the runningback to run through by blocking out the defenders of that area. In the case of passing plays, the line tries to impede the forward progress of the defense to the QB. This wins the QB time to be able to look down field and find the open WR.

Captain:
The team Captain is known as the leader of the team but is also responsible for talking to the referees in the event a decision needs to be made.

Catch:
The successful catch of a thrown ball by the QB.

Chain:
A chain that is exactly 10 yards long is used along the sidelines to show how many yards are needed for the 1st down. It is placed so that every coach, fan and player can see it at all times. It shows where the 1st down started and how far the offense has yet to go to get a fresh set of downs. When it gets tight, the chain is used as a measuring tape in determining if the necessary yards were achieved for a 1st down.

Cheerleader:
Normally female, they are the official „fans“ of the team.  They support their teams through organized cheers and stunts to get the fans involved. Some teams even perform acrobatic stunts or have dance teams as well.

Clipping:
This is an illegal block that is penalized by 15 yards. A blocker blocks his opponent in the back or goes for the legs from behind of their intended man. Very dangerous and highly frowned upon.

Complete Pass:
The successful catch of a thrown ball by the QB.

Completion Percentage:
This is a statistical measurement that shows out of all the passes thrown by the QB, how many of them arrive safely with the WR.

Cornerback:
The fastest players on the defense. They line up to defend the wide receiver’s routes. He is often additionally used as a kick or punt returner due to his speed.

Conversion:
One of the two possibilities the offense has to score additional points after a touchdown. With either a pass or a run play, the offense can gain 2 extra points with a conversion.

Dead Ball:
The term used for when a play is not underway.

Defense:
The defensive team.

Delay of Game:
After the spotting of a ball when the ball carrier has been tackled, a 25 sec (college) and 35 sec (NFL) play clock starts. The next play must be started within this time period, or a 5 yard penalty will be induced. 

Division:
The further dividing up of a conference. Normally 4 to 6 teams per division.

Down:
An offensive try/attempt to move the ball forward. A team has four of these tries to reach 10 yards. Normally if they do not achieve the 10 yards in four tries the ball will be kicked. Either in the form of a punt or a field goal.

Down Marker:
An upright marker that denotes the down as well as the current placement of the ball.

Draft:
NFL teams who want a particular player are not allowed to simply sign a contract with him. Once a year there is a draft where all the players are in a pool and the teams can choose who they want.  In order to help the teams that are the worst, the teams who had the worst records from the previous season get to choose first.  It is simply a reverse line up, worst goes first and best goes last.

Eligible:
The rules see to it that not every player is allowed to catch a down field pass. The offensive line men are not allowed to catch a pass. However, if the ball is deflected in the air, all offensive players are eligible to catch the ball and advance it.

Extra Point:
The Extra Point is the attempt for one additional point after a touchdown has been scored. The kicker has to kick the ball through the uprights.

Face Mask:
The small cage attached to the helmet in front of the players face is called the face mask .There is a very serious penalty that results when a player of the opposing teams grabs a player by the face mask and using it to control the player’s movements. It is a 15 yd penalty. This puts the player’s neck at risk for injury.

Fair Catch:
This is the signal that either a punt or kick returner can give if he believes that he will only hinder the teams chances of advancing the ball upon catching it. Sometimes the coverage team gets to him and it will only be a large risk of a fumble if he attempts a return.

Fake:
An attempt by the offense to make a pass play look like a run. This is done in order to both buy the QB some time, but also create holes in the defense.  The defensive player thinks it is a run, comes up for run support than has to drop back into pass coverage. Also on special teams fakes can be made.  A fake punt or a fake field goal give drives new life.

Field Goal:
Successful kicking of the ball through the uprights. 3 points are awarded for this.

Forward Pass:
This is every pass that is clearly thrown forward. These passes are only allowed when thrown from behind the line of scrimmage.

Fumble:

This is when the ball carrier loses control of the ball and allows it to hit the ground. Often results in a turnover.

Goal Line:
This is the line that divides the endzone with the rest of the playing field. A touchdown counts when a portion of the ball breaks the plane of the goal line.

Hang Time:
The length of time that a ball is in the air after which it has been punted.

Holding:
This is a foul where one player attempts to „hold on“ to an opponent who is not in possession of the ball.

Huddle:

A brief „meeting“ of either the offense or the defense before the next play starts.  This is where the QB, in the case of the offense, and the middle linebacker, in the case of the defense, tell the rest of the team what the coming play will be.  The play is sent in from the coach, and then from QB or LB to the rest of the team.

I-Formation:
This is a formation used by the offense which has the ball carriers lined up behind the QB.

Incomplete Pass:
A pass from the quarterback that is not caught by the intended person. Results in a loss of down.

Interception:
A pass from the QB that is caught instead by the defense and is therefore a turnover.

Interference:
Illegal interference of a defender of a WR or a kick returner. If this happens, the offense is rewarded with 15 yards.

Intentional Grounding:
The throwing of the ball to no one with the intention of avoiding a sack. Officially it is allowed to throw the ball to the ground to stop the clock.  With an incomplete pass the clock is stopped. It is however illegal to throw the ball where no one is to avoid the loss of yards that would result from the sack. It is a 5 yard penalty and a loss of downs.

Kicking Tee:
A holder that keeps the ball in place before it is kicked.

Kickoff:
The start of the game. The kicker kicks the ball from the tee as far in the opponent’s direction as possible.

Kick Return:
The term used to describe the effort by the defensive team to return a kick.

Linebacker:
The defensemen who stands behind the defensive line and has the responsibility of rushing the passer or storming to the runningback.

Line of  Scrimmage:
The imaginary line that reflects the point at which the last play came to an end and subsequently where the next play will start.   The markings on the field serve to give a measurement for this line.

Man-in-Motion:
The only player that is allowed to run parallel to the line of scrimmage during the period of time before the snap when all players may not move until the ball is snapped.

Neutrale Zone:
The official description of the line of scrimmage, which actually is not a line because the breadth of the ball makes up this area.

Offense:
The team who is in possession of the ball.

Offside:
The defense is offsides when a player jumps into the neutral zone and touches an offensive player before the start of the play. An offensive off sides, more well known as encroachment, is when an offensive player is lined up in the neutral zone, or makes a sudden movement before the snap of the ball.

Onside Kick:
A kick by the kicking team that in contrast to a normal kick, is a short, diagonal kick that most go at least 10 yds.  This is done in an effort to get the ball back after a touchdown.  Normally only done when a team is behind and is trying to come back.

Out of Bounds:
The area that makes up the grounds outside of the official field of play.

Pass Interference:
The illegal hindering of a receiver by a defensemen while attempting to catch a pass intended for him.

Pass Pattern:
The route that the receiver and QB plan before the start of the play. It has a great deal to do with timing and knowing where everyone on the field is.

Penalty:
The penalty after a foul. Normally it comes in the form of a loss of yards, sometimes it results in the loss of a down or this can even give the offensive team an automatic first down. The most significant penalty, but most seldom occurrence would be the calling back of a touchdown.  

Personal Foul:
Foul in which a player personally fouls another player. Hitting, tripping, grabbing of the facemask all belong to this. The penalty is always 15 yards.

Pocket:
The zone behind the line of scrimmage where the quarterback sits and tries to read the defense during a pass. This area is created by the offensive line in their effort to protect him.

Pro Bowl:
The „All Star“ game in the NFL.

Punt:
Kicking the ball from the hand. This play is called in the event that the offensive team has not achieved the 10 yards needed for a first down. With a punt the possession of the ball then goes over to the defensive team.

Punt Return:
The term used to describe the effort of the defense to return a punted ball as far as possible.

Quarter:
A quarter of one game.

Quarterback:
The field general. He receives the ball through the legs of the center and from here can do one of three things: give the ball to a running back, pass the ball down field in the form a forward pass, run the ball himself. They must make decisions within seconds as the offensive line is normally only able to protect him for a few seconds. If the pocket is overwhelmed by the defense the QB will normally try to run the ball himself. This is known as scrambling. As long as he doesn’t pass the line of scrimmage, he can still attempt a forward pass when he is scrambling.

Recovery:
The recovery of a ball that has been fumbled. 

Rookie :
In the NFL any first year player in the league is known as a Rookie.

Roughing the Passer:
The attack or tackling of a QB after the ball has been thrown. This comes into play when a defensive player has the opportunity to stop the pursuit of the QB, but continues and tackles the QB.  The penalty is 15 yards and an automatic first down for the offense.

Running Back:
This player, after receiving the ball in the form of a hand-off from the QB, attempts to break through the defense and gain as many yards as possible. The offensive line attempts to create holes through which the running back will run.  He can also run routes and catch the ball.

Rushing:
A running play.

Sack:
When a QB is tackled behind the line of scrimmage.

Safety:

1. When a ball carrier is tackled in his own endzone. The opponent receives 2 points in this case.
2. A position in the defense. He is the safety valve and is usually responsible for pass coverage.

Scramble:
An attempt on behalf of the QB to elude the pass rush.

Shotgun Formation:
A formation in football that allows the QB to align about 5 yards behind the center.  The ball is still snapped through the center’s legs, however it is done so in order for the ball to travel the 5 yards in the air. This buys the QB time in the pocket as well as gives him an earlier idea of what the defense is doing.

Starting Team:
The 11 man team that starts the game on the field.  These are the best 11 offensive or defensive players.

Sweep :
A running play where the offense attempts the run outside of the commotion of the defensive line in the middle.

Tackle :
Bringing of a ball carrier to the ground.  It is only allowed when a player has possession of the ball.

Time out:
Stoppage of the play clock. Both teams get 3 timeouts per half. These are used to discuss situations longer, or most specifically to stop the clock.

Touchback:
When the returning team decides not to return the ball when it has been kicked into the endzone, or when the kick off goes so far it actually goes through the endzone thus leaving no return possible. The ball is then placed on the 20 yd. line.

Turnover:
The loss of possession of the ball through a fumble or an interception.

Two Minute Warning:
Two minutes before the end of every half the referee will signal the two minute warning. It serves as a time out for both teams.

Umpire:
One of the five supporting referees who help in calling a game under the leadership of the Head Referee.

Unsportsmanlike Conduct:
Behaviour that is unbecoming of a sportsman. This misbehaviour can be directed at the referees, teasing the opponent, excessive celebration after a big play.

Wide Receiver:
The fastest player in the offense.  He catches passes from the QB and then continues moving the ball as far forward as possible. They run specific routes that are, prior to the snap of the ball, planned out with the QB.  They too are responsible for blocking in run plays.

Wild-Card-Team:
A team, in the NFL, that makes it to the playoffs despite not winning their division. They are the team with the best record in their conference, who did not win their division.