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RULE 8 OVERVIEW

What's in This Deck

Point Values

Touchdown

Try

Field Goal

Force, Safety, and Touchback

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SECTION 1 · TABLE 8-1

Point Values

Score	Points
Touchdown	6 points
Field Goal	3 points
Safety	2 points, awarded to the opponent
Successful Try — after Touchdown	2 points
Successful Try — Field Goal or Safety	1 point
Forfeited Game	Offended team 1, opponent 0 — unless the offended team is already ahead, in which case that score stands

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SECTION

Touchdown

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SECTION 2 · ART. 1

What Is a Touchdown?

Possession of a live ball in the opponent's end zone is always a touchdown.

A runner advances from the field of play so the ball penetrates the vertical plane of the opponent's goal line.
A loose ball is caught or recovered by a player while the ball is on or behind his opponent's goal line.
A backward pass or fumble is declared dead in the end zone of the opponent of the player who threw or fumbled it, with no player in possession (other than because of an inadvertent whistle).

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SECTION 2 · ART. 2–5

Fouls During a Scoring Down

Opponent fouls (not unsportsmanlike/nonplayer), no change of possession: A may accept the result and choose enforcement on the try or the succeeding spot.
Opponent fouls after a change of possession during the down: the scoring team gets the same choice — try or succeeding spot.
Unsportsmanlike or nonplayer fouls by EITHER team during the scoring down: the opponent gets the same choice — try or succeeding spot.
Any foul after the touchdown but before the initial ready-for-play for the try, where the basic spot is the succeeding spot: the offended team gets the same choice again.

The Pattern

Almost every foul around a touchdown boils down to the same choice: enforce on the try, or enforce on the succeeding spot (usually the next kickoff)
The touchdown itself is essentially never erased by these fouls

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.1, 8.2.2 SITUATION A

The Pylon, and Holding During a Score

THE PLAY

(8.2.1) Runner A10 dives into the pylon at the intersection of the goal line and sideline, and the ball breaks the plane of the goal line.

(8.2.2-A) During (a) A9's run for a touchdown, B2 holds A1; or (b) K1's field goal, R2 holds K1.

THE RULING

(8.2.1) Touchdown. Assuming the pylon is placed properly, the ball broke the plane of the goal line before it ever touched the pylon — the pylon itself is just a marker, not a boundary the ball has to clear.

(8.2.2-A) (a) A will likely keep the score and may choose to enforce the penalty on the try or on the subsequent kickoff. (b) K may keep the points and have the penalty enforced from the succeeding spot, or instead enforce it from the previous spot and replay the down.

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.2 SITUATION B

A Foul as the Half Expires

THE PLAY

On the down in which time expires for the second period, Team A: (a) scores a field goal, or (b) scores a touchdown. In both cases, the opponents commit a live-ball foul.

THE RULING

(a) The offended team may keep the score, with the penalty assessed on the second-half kickoff — that's the succeeding spot here.

(b) The offended team may keep the score, with the penalty assessed on either the try or the second-half kickoff (the subsequent kickoff).

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.2 — D, G

Fouls Around, or During, the Scoring Play

THE PLAY

(D) A1 scores a touchdown. After the score, B commits a (a) dead-ball, (b) unsportsmanlike, or (c) nonplayer foul before the initial ready-for-play for the try.

(G) A1 scores a touchdown. During the scoring play itself, (a) A commits an unsportsmanlike foul, or (b) B commits an unsportsmanlike foul.

THE RULING

(D) In all three — (a), (b), (c) — Team A may enforce the foul at the succeeding spot or on the subsequent kickoff.

(G) In both (a) and (b), the touchdown still counts. The offended team gets to choose between enforcing the penalty on the try or carrying it to the subsequent kickoff.

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.2 SITUATION E

Stacking Penalties From Different Downs

THE PLAY

Before the ball is thrown on a play where A1 catches a touchdown pass and scores, B1 holds A2 (who was trying to get open on the other side of the field, away from the play). A elects to enforce that holding penalty on the subsequent kickoff. Then, during the successful two-point try, B1 holds A1 again. Can A add that second 10-yard penalty onto the first one, both on the subsequent kickoff?

THE RULING

Yes. The two fouls didn't happen during the same down, so they aren't multiple fouls — they're two entirely separate fouls, and both can be enforced on the subsequent kickoff, stacked together.

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.2 SITUATION F

Fouls on Both the Score and the Try

THE PLAY

(a) During a touchdown run by A1, B1 holds. (b) On the ensuing successful kick try, there's a foul by B2.

THE RULING

(a) A gets to choose: accept the score and attempt the try from the 1½-yard line, or accept the score and enforce the penalty on the subsequent kickoff instead.

(b) After the successful try, A may either replay the try from the ¾-yard line, or accept the 1-point try and enforce B's try-foul penalty on the subsequent kickoff.

It's entirely within the rules for A to have BOTH of these penalties enforced on the same subsequent kickoff.

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CASE PLAY — 8.2.3

R Scores on a Kick Return, With a K Foul

THE PLAY

R returns K's scrimmage kick for a touchdown, and: (a) during the kick, K commits a holding foul; or (b) during the return, K commits a foul for blocking below the waist.

THE RULING

(a) The succeeding spot here is the goal line itself (the touchdown). R may accept the distance penalty enforced on the try, or decline it — either way, the touchdown scores. Since this foul happened BEFORE the change of possession, there's no option to enforce it on the succeeding kickoff instead.

(b) Because this foul happened on a play with a touchdown AFTER the change of possession, R can keep the touchdown and choose to enforce the penalty on either the try or the succeeding kickoff.

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SECTION

Try

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SECTION 3 · ART. 1–2

The Try — Basics

After a touchdown, the scoring team attempts a try — a scrimmage down, neither numbered nor timed, snapped from a spot A designates anywhere between the hash marks on B's 3-yard line (unless moved by penalty).

EXCEPTION: if the touchdown is scored on the last down of the fourth period, the try isn't attempted unless the point(s) could affect the game or playoff outcome.

The try begins when the ball is ready for play. It ends when:

B secures possession.
It's apparent a drop kick or place kick won't score.
The try is successful, or the ball becomes dead for any other reason.

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SECTION 3 · ART. 3–4

Scoring During a Try

During a try, A may score two points (what would otherwise be a touchdown) or one point (what would otherwise be a field goal or safety by B), under the rules that govern play at other times in the game.
Only A may score during a try.
If a loss-of-down foul by A occurs during a SUCCESSFUL try, there's no score and no replay.

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SECTION 3 · ART. 5–9

Fouls During the Try, and What Follows

If a foul by B occurs during a successful try, A chooses between:

Accepting the penalty and replaying the down after enforcement, or
Accepting the result of the play, with the penalty enforced from the succeeding spot.

During an UNSUCCESSFUL try: a foul by A/K is obviously declined — the result stands, no replay. A foul by B/R, if accepted, means the down is replayed after enforcement. A double foul always means the down is replayed.
When a try is replayed, the snap may be from any point between the hash marks on the yard line through the spot of the ball.
After a try, the opponent of the scoring team designates which team kicks off.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.2 SITUATION A

A Fumble on the Try, Batted Away

THE PLAY

Following a penalty, the try is from B's 8. A1 advances to B's 4 and fumbles. The fumble rolls into the end zone, where B1 intentionally bats or kicks the ball across the end line.

THE RULING

The measurement for B1's foul is from B's 4, where A1's run ended. The new try is from the 2-yard line, anywhere between the hash marks — B's illegal bat doesn't get to erase the yardage A1 had already gained.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.2 SITUATION B, 8.3.3 SITUATION B

When the Try Fails to Score

THE PLAY

(8.3.2-B) During a try by place-kick, K1's kick is blocked by R1 and recovered by K2, who advances across R's goal line.

(8.3.3-B) During a non-kick try, A1 fumbles, and while scrambling to recover the ball and avoid defenders, retreats into his own end zone, where he's tackled still in possession of the ball.

THE RULING

(8.3.2-B) The try is unsuccessful. The try and the down both ended the moment the kick was blocked and it became obvious it wouldn't score — K2's advance afterward doesn't matter. The covering official should sound the whistle immediately once it's clear the kick can't score.

(8.3.3-B) The ball is dead, and no points are awarded. B cannot score during a try — not even if A effectively hands them one by retreating into their own end zone.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.2 SITUATION C

Fouls During a Pass Try

THE PLAY

During a try, A1 completes a pass to A2 in the end zone, and: (a) ineligible A3 was illegally beyond the neutral zone; (b) A4 interfered with B1; or (c) B2 interfered with A2.

THE RULING

(a) If the 5-yard penalty is accepted, the try is repeated.

(b) If the 15-yard penalty is accepted, the try is repeated.

(c) A will almost certainly accept the result of the play instead, and enforce the penalty from the succeeding spot — keeping the 2 points is better than repeating the try.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.3 SITUATION A

A New Force Sends the Ball Into the End Zone

THE PLAY

During a try, a fumble by A1 is nearly at rest on the 3-yard line when B1's muff is judged to be a new force, sending the ball into B's end zone, where B2 recovers and: (a) downs it there, or (b) advances to his own 10.

THE RULING

The try ends the instant B2 recovers. In an ordinary down, a dead ball in the end zone under these circumstances would be a safety — so here, that translates to one point for A, in BOTH (a) and (b). What B2 does after recovering doesn't change the outcome.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.5 SITUATION A

Fouls During a Kick Try

THE PLAY

During a kick try: (a) B1 holds, and the try is successful; (b) A1 holds, and the try is successful; or (c) B1 roughs the kicker/holder, and the try is unsuccessful.

THE RULING

(a) A may accept the score and enforce the penalty from the succeeding spot, OR enforce it from the previous spot and replay the down.

(b) B will obviously accept the penalty and force a replay.

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CASE PLAY — 8.3.5 — B, C

Fouls During a Two-Point Try

THE PLAY

(B) During a successful two-point try: (a) B1 roughs the passer, or (b) B2 holds tight end A8.

(C) During a successful two-point try, B1 is flagged for pass interference against A1. After the untimed down ends, A1 taunts B1.

THE RULING

(B) In both (a) and (b), A may accept the score and have the penalty assessed from the succeeding spot.

(C) A may accept the score with the penalty enforced at the succeeding spot. But B has a counter-option: accept the penalty for A1's dead-ball taunting foul instead, marking off 15 yards from wherever the ball ends up after enforcing B's own penalty first — the ball would then be free-kicked from K's 40.

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SECTION

Field Goal

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SECTION 4 · ART. 1–3

What Counts as a Field Goal, and What Follows

A field-goal attempt is a place kick or drop kick from scrimmage, or a free kick following a fair catch or an awarded fair catch.
The kicked ball must not touch any K player beyond the expanded neutral zone, or the ground, before passing through the goal.
The kicked ball must pass between the uprights (or the inside of the uprights extended) and above the crossbar of the opponent's goal.
After a field goal, the opponent of the scoring team designates which team kicks off.
If a foul by R occurs during a successful field goal, K chooses between accepting the penalty and replaying the down after enforcement, or accepting the result of the play with the penalty enforced from the succeeding spot.

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CASE PLAY — 8.4.1 SITUATION A, 8.4.3

Wind, and Roughing on a Successful Kick

THE PLAY

(A) A field-goal attempt: (a) goes directly over an upright, or (b) is clearly over the crossbar between the uprights. In both cases, the wind blows the ball back so it drops into B's end zone.

(8.4.3) Fourth and 5 from B's 18. K1's field-goal attempt is successful, and B1 roughs the kicker/holder.

THE RULING

(A) (a) is unsuccessful — the ball never penetrated the plane of the goal between the inside of the uprights extended. (b) IS a legal field goal — once it's clearly through, it doesn't matter whether the wind brings it back above or below the crossbar afterward.

(8.4.3) K may accept the result (3 points) with the penalty enforced from the succeeding spot, or accept the penalty instead. If K accepts the penalty and retains possession, it becomes first and goal from R's 9.

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CASE PLAY — 8.4.1 SITUATION B

Field Goal vs. Touchback — Same Kick, Different Setup

THE PLAY

K has the ball on R's 40 for a free kick, following: (a) a fair catch; (b) an awarded fair catch; or (c) a safety followed by a couple of dead-ball penalties. In all three, K1 place kicks the ball between the uprights and over the crossbar.

THE RULING

Field goal in (a) and (b) — a free kick following a fair catch or an awarded fair catch is allowed to score a field goal.

Touchback in (c) — a kickoff (including one following a safety) can never score a field goal, no matter how clean the kick is or how the ball got to that spot on the field.

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SECTION

Force, Safety,

and Touchback

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SECTION 5 · ART. 1–2 (CORE)

Force, and the Basics of a Safety

Responsibility for forcing the ball across a goal line belongs to whoever carried, snapped, passed, fumbled, or kicked it — unless a new force is applied to a grounded backward pass, kick, or fumble.

Muffing or batting a pass, kick, or fumble in flight is NOT a new force.
Accidentally touching a loose ball after being blocked into it is ignored, and also isn't a new force.

It's a safety when a runner carries the ball from the field of play to or across his own goal line, and it becomes dead there in his own team's possession.

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SECTION 5 · ART. 2 (MOMENTUM EXCEPTION)

The Momentum Exception

When a defender intercepts a pass, intercepts or recovers a fumble/backward pass, or (from between his 5-yard line and the goal line) catches or recovers a scrimmage kick or free kick — and his ORIGINAL momentum carries him into the end zone, where the ball is declared dead in his team's possession (or goes out of bounds there) — the ball belongs to his team at the spot where he made the interception, recovery, or catch, NOT in the end zone.

This includes a fumble that goes from the end zone into the field of play and back out of bounds.

Why This Matters

Without this exception, a defender who makes a great play deep in his own territory could be punished with a safety just for his own momentum carrying him backward
The exception only protects the ORIGINAL momentum — anything that happens after he's stopped or advances is a different story

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SECTION 5 · ART. 2 (OTHER SAFETY TRIGGERS)

Other Ways a Safety Occurs

A player — in the field of play or his own end zone — forces a loose ball to or across his own goal line by his kick, pass, fumble, snap, or a NEW force (muff, bat, or illegal kick when declined) applied to an already-grounded loose ball, and it becomes dead there in his team's possession (including with no player in possession), or goes out of bounds there.

This does NOT apply to a legal forward pass that simply becomes incomplete.

An offensive player commits any foul enforced from a spot in his own end zone, or throws an illegal forward pass from his end zone that's declined, leaving him in possession there with the ball having been forced in by his own team.

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SECTION 5 · ART. 3–4

Touchback, and Putting the Ball Back in Play

It's a touchback when:

A free kick or scrimmage kick (not a scoring attempt, or a grounded 3-point FG attempt) breaks the plane of R's goal line — unless R chooses the spot of first touching by K.
A 3-point FG attempt touches a K player in R's end zone in flight, or fails after breaking the goal-line plane.
A kick becomes dead on or behind K's own goal line in K's possession, with the new force being R's muff or bat of an already-grounded kick.
A fumble (or a muff/bat of a backward pass or grounded fumble) sends the ball to or across the opponent's goal line, and that opponent ends up in possession there, or it goes out of bounds there.
A forward pass is intercepted in B's end zone and becomes dead there in B's possession.

After a Touchback or Safety

Touchback: the defending team snaps anywhere between the hash marks on its own 20
Safety: the team that gave up the safety free-kicks from its own 20

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.1 SITUATION A

A Fumble Left Unrecovered in K's End Zone

THE PLAY

R1 returns the second-half kickoff to K's 10 and fumbles: (a) the ball rolls into K's end zone; or (b) K1 attempts to recover and instead forces the ball into his own end zone. In both cases, no player of either team recovers it, and the Referee — after waiting a few seconds — sounds his whistle.

THE RULING

Touchdown for R in both (a) and (b) — the fumbling team retains possession when nobody recovers a loose ball that ends up dead in the opponent's end zone.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.1 SITUATION B

Pushed Into the End Zone — Three Outcomes

THE PLAY

First and 10 on A's 12. A1's fumble is still rolling slowly on A's 4 when A2, trying to recover it, pushes B1 into the ball, sending it across the goal line, where it's recovered by: (a) A3, downed there; (b) A4, who advances to A's 15; or (c) B2, downed immediately.

THE RULING

(a) Safety — A caused the new force (the push) that sent its own fumble into its own end zone, and A recovered it there.

(b) A's ball on the 15, second and 7 — A4 advanced it back out before it became dead.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.1 SITUATION C, 8.5.3 SITUATION A

Same Question, Opposite Answers — Who Supplied the Force?

THE PLAY

(8.5.1-C) K1's own scrimmage kick, from his own end zone, is muffed in flight beyond the neutral zone by R1 and rebounds into the end zone, where K2 recovers and is tackled there.

(8.5.3-A) Fourth and 7 from K's 10. K1 punts from the end zone. The kick is partially blocked and barely moving at K's 2 when R1's muff supplies a NEW force that moves the ball into, and back out of, the end zone.

THE RULING

(8.5.1-C) Safety. The force that put the ball in the end zone was still K1's original kick — R's muff never became a new force here, since the kick's own momentum was already doing the work. R gets 2 points; K free-kicks from its own 20.

(8.5.3-A) Touchback. Here, R1's muff DID supply a genuine new force, this time carrying the ball back OUT of K's end zone — flipping the ruling entirely. The difference between these two nearly-identical situations is exactly why the "new force" judgment call matters so much.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.1 SITUATION D

Accept or Decline — Avoiding a Self-Inflicted Safety

THE PLAY

First and 10 on A's 3. Runner A1 fumbles on his 2-yard line. B1 intentionally kicks the loose ball, which is: (a) on A's 2, or (b) in the end zone. The ball then goes out of bounds behind the goal line.

THE RULING

(a) Team A will undoubtedly DECLINE the penalty and simply take the touchback — accepting it would gain nothing.

(b) Team A will ACCEPT the penalty here — declining it would hand B a safety instead, since the ball was already in the end zone when B's illegal kick sent it out.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.1 SITUATION E

A Touchback, Then a Dead-Ball Foul

THE PLAY

A1's forward pass is intercepted in B's end zone by B1, who tries to advance but is downed there. B2 clips: (a) during B1's run, or (b) after B1 is downed.

THE RULING

Touchback in both — the basic spot here is the succeeding spot (B's 20). In (a), B2's live-ball foul happens during the return: first and 10 for B from its own 1½. In (b), it's a dead-ball foul instead, penalized from B's 20: first and 10 from B's 10.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 — A, G, H

The Momentum Exception in Action

THE PLAY

(A) R1 makes an over-the-shoulder catch of a scrimmage kick on his own 2, running full speed toward his own goal. His momentum carries him into the end zone with the ball.

(G) B1, in full stride at B's 2, (a) intercepts a backward pass, (b) intercepts a fumble, or (c) recovers a grounded fumble or backward pass — his momentum carries him into his end zone, where he's downed.

(H) R1, in full stride at his 2, (a) catches a punt over his shoulder, or (b) recovers a grounded punt — same momentum carry into the end zone.

THE RULING

(A) Since R1's own momentum carried him into his end zone, if the ball becomes dead there in his possession, it's R's ball at the spot of the CATCH — not the end zone. Same result if it goes out of bounds behind the goal line while he was last in possession.

(G) In all three — (a), (b), (c) — the ball belongs to B at the spot where the backward pass or fumble was intercepted or recovered. The momentum exception applies across all these loose-ball types identically.

(H) Same principle again — in both (a) and (b), the ball belongs to R at the spot where the punt was caught or recovered.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 SITUATION B

A Blocked Kick Into the End Zone

THE PLAY

Fourth and 3 from his own 10. K1's scrimmage kick is blocked so it rebounds into K's own end zone, and: (a) it's muffed out of bounds in the end zone by either team; or (b) it's simultaneously recovered there by K2 and R1.

THE RULING

(a) Safety — R gets 2 points, and K puts the ball in play with a free kick from its own 20.

(b) Touchdown for R — simultaneous recovery of a kick in the end zone favors the receiving team.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 SITUATION C

Judging Whether a New Force Was Supplied

THE PLAY

K1's punt is blocked on K's 5 and is slowly rolling near the goal line. R1 tries to recover and just barely touches the ball. It then rolls into the end zone, where K2 falls on it.

THE RULING

This comes down to the covering official's judgment: did R1's touch actually create a new force, or was the ball already going to reach the end zone regardless? If the official has doubt, the ruling defaults to the kick itself having supplied the force — resulting in a safety. Only if the official is confident R1 supplied a genuine new force does it become a touchback instead.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 SITUATION D

A Fumble, a Pass, and Illegal Touching — All in the End Zone

THE PLAY

Fourth and 15 for A from its own 8. A1, in punt formation, takes the snap in his end zone but fumbles. He quickly recovers and throws a forward pass to ineligible A2, also in the end zone. A2 muffs it, and it falls incomplete.

THE RULING

If B accepts the penalty for A2's illegal touching, the result is a SAFETY. If B declines it instead, the result is B's ball, first and goal, from A's 8 — B has to choose between the guaranteed 2 points or field position with a fresh set of downs.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 SITUATION E

Fumbling Away the Momentum Exception

THE PLAY

B1 intercepts a pass on B's 4, with his momentum taking him directly toward his own goal line: (a) B1 fumbles on the 1, or (b) B1 is contacted by A2 and the ball comes loose on the 2. In both cases, B2 recovers in B's end zone and is downed there.

THE RULING

Safety in BOTH (a) and (b). The moment B1 gained possession in the field of play, he became responsible for what happened next — his own fumble is what actually put the ball in the end zone. Had he simply been downed without fumbling, the momentum exception would have protected him; fumbling forfeits that protection.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.2 SITUATION F

When the Momentum Exception Ends

THE PLAY

B1 intercepts on his own 4, and his momentum takes him into his own end zone. (a) He advances back OUT of the end zone and runs to his own 35; (b) he runs out, then circles back into the end zone and is downed there; (c) he's hit and fumbles, and A1 falls on the loose ball in the end zone; or (d) B2 holds A1 in the end zone while B1 is downed there.

THE RULING

(a) Legal advance — no issue at all.

(b) Safety — once B1 advanced OUT of the end zone (as in (a) or (b)), the momentum exception was already used up; whatever happens after that point controls the ruling on its own merits.

(d) Safety — B2's foul happened IN the end zone, which is what decides this one, independent of the momentum question.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.3 SITUATION B

R's Own Kick Into Its Own End Zone Isn't a New Force

THE PLAY

K1 kicks off to start the second half. The ball is rolling on R's 7 when R1: (a) accidentally, or (b) intentionally kicks the ball into his own end zone, where R2 recovers.

THE RULING

It's NOT a new force in either case — force simply isn't a consideration on kicks going into R's own end zone; the kick hadn't ended yet. (a) is ignored entirely, since it wasn't intentional. (b) is an illegal kick — if the penalty is accepted, it's enforced from the previous spot; if declined, it's a touchback by rule. In both cases, the ball becomes dead the instant the kick breaks the plane of R's goal line.

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CASE PLAY — 8.5.3 — C, D

Touchback via a Backward Motion, Then a Foul

THE PLAY

(C) B1 intercepts a forward pass in his own end zone, then passes backward to B2, who: (a) muffs it out of bounds across the sideline behind the goal line, or (b) bats it over the end line.

(D) A1, on an attempted two-point conversion, fumbles forward into B's end zone just before reaching the goal line, and the ball touches the ground and keeps rolling. To prevent B from recovering it, B2 bats or kicks it over the end line.

THE RULING

(C) In both (a) and (b), the force that put the ball in the end zone was A1's original forward pass. B2's muff or bat afterward doesn't change that — the result is a touchback, first and 10 for B from its own 20.

(D) B has committed a foul for illegal kicking or batting. The result is still a touchback, since A1's fumble is what forced the ball into the end zone in the first place. If A accepts the batting/kicking penalty, it's enforced from where A1 lost possession, and A replays the try.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

Rule 8 — Key Takeaways

Nearly every foul around a touchdown reduces to the same choice for the offended team: enforce on the try, or enforce on the succeeding spot (usually the next kickoff) — the touchdown itself almost never gets erased.

The momentum exception only protects a defender's ORIGINAL carry into the end zone. The moment he fumbles, advances back out, or a foul happens independently in the end zone, the exception stops applying and the play is judged on its own merits.

"New force" is often a genuine judgment call, not a bright line — when an official has doubt about whether a muff or bat actually redirected the ball, the rule defaults to crediting the original kick, which usually means a safety rather than a touchback.

A muff or bat of a ball still in flight is never a new force — only contact with a ball that has already touched the ground can create one.

Only the scoring team can score during a try — the defense can prevent points, but can never score points of its own on that down, no matter what happens with the ball.

The try is mandatory — a team can never simply decline to attempt it, regardless of the score or the game situation.