When should it be a touchdown?

[comfortably numb]

Some have expressed angst over the flying thru the air over the pylon so it is a touchdown rule.
So, when should a touchdown be a touchdown? (Not that anyone listens to us...)

Flying over the pylon?
Ball breaking the plane in mid air?
When a player crosses the line?
When the ball is 'touched down' in the endzone?

[Frank Capua]

Farve crossed the line but nobody is giving him any points. Heck if you go by accounts Farve didn't score at all.


BTW how does one find this media boy forum I hear so much about?

[MichaelP]

I thought I knew what a touchdown was for the last 30 years, but this year the refs are telling me I've been wrong all this time.

[Mario4ever]

I still know when it is or is not a touchdown. What I can't figure out, though, is when the resulting celebration is or is not excessive.

[Coyote]

And I used to know a catch when I saw one but now I don't know when the process is over. Yesterday a guy slid to a complete stop with the ball. But the process was still not over. So even when all motion ceases there's more to do.

A touchdown is when you have control of the ball and it breaks the plane between the outside edges of the pylons. Or when you have control past the plane and you establish as being in bounds. And probably some other versions I'm forgetting. The rules seem ok to me on touchdowns.

[ensign14]

On the basis that it's called a touchdown, they should touch the ball down. Simples.

And on the basis it's not football, it should be called gridiron or something.

[Truth Detector]

And on the basis it's not football, it should be called gridiron or something.

Well, if we're going to be picky then your "soccer" should be called "riot-starter".

[mattndallas]

I don't mind the TD call when stretching out to reach the pylon (or over it), but I want the officials to start calling the downside of this attempt - the ball that is jarred loose when reaching that goes through the endzone, or over the cone, as a "fumble". Should be a touchback - opponents ball at the 20, but you never see officials really looking at change of possession. They just look at awarding the ball at the 1, or if it's a TD.

I think if some of these guys had their "reaching" efforts denied, and actually lost control of the ball out of the endzone, resulting in a red zone TO, they'd be a bit more judicial in reaching an unprotected ball out there, hoping to hit the pylon, or break the plane.

[ensign14]

Well, if we're going to be picky then your "soccer" should be called "riot-starter".

So a game should be named for something that happens one in a hundred thousand times?

Perhaps they should rename gridiron "interesting" on that basis.

[Canth]

I don't mind the TD call when stretching out to reach the pylon (or over it), but I want the officials to start calling the downside of this attempt - the ball that is jarred loose when reaching that goes through the endzone, or over the cone, as a "fumble". Should be a touchback - opponents ball at the 20, but you never see officials really looking at change of possession. They just look at awarding the ball at the 1, or if it's a TD.

I think if some of these guys had their "reaching" efforts denied, and actually lost control of the ball out of the endzone, resulting in a red zone TO, they'd be a bit more judicial in reaching an unprotected ball out there, hoping to hit the pylon, or break the plane.

Well, I believe part of that is because the play is considered over as soon as the TD occurs. So, its not a fumble because once it crosses the plane, its a score and a dead ball.

IMO, the current confusion is not the rules of what is a touchdown, but rather what is considered a catch. That is where I think most people are disagreeing with the rules - determining what is a catch, which determines when the player has possession.

[Coyote]

And on the basis it's not football, it should be called gridiron or something.

They were planning on calling it handball. But there was already a cool sport with that name. So they chose to call it football.

[Coyote]

I don't mind the TD call when stretching out to reach the pylon (or over it), but I want the officials to start calling the downside of this attempt - the ball that is jarred loose when reaching that goes through the endzone, or over the cone, as a "fumble". Should be a touchback - opponents ball at the 20, but you never see officials really looking at change of possession. They just look at awarding the ball at the 1, or if it's a TD.

I've seen them call that correctly a number of times. I hadn't really noticed that they didn't. Although maybe the ones that go over the cone they wimp out and say it went out before the plane.

[Jim Wilke]

You need to have a knee, two feet or the ball touched down in the end zone. Waving the ball over the pylon shouldn't count and neither should that phony 'breaking the plane.'

And while we're on the subject of bad rules, a ball fumbled into and out of the end zone should go back to the offense at the spot of the fumble instead of going over to the defense. Deion Branch's last catch for the Seahawks went for 47 yds - but the ball was punched out as he neared the goal and no one recovered. Instead of being a TD, instead of Seattle getting a first down at the 1 foot line, San Diego got the ball at the 20. That's a bad rule.

[comfortably numb]

Yup, (gulp) I agree---on both counts.

If you fumble the ball out of bounds you don't lose it.
Why should you if it goes thru and out of the endzone.
If it happens whena team has snapped the ball outside the twenty, give it to them on the 20.
If it happens inside the twenty, place it at the previous line of scrimage.

[Truth Detector]

So a game should be named for something that happens one in a hundred thousand times?

Perhaps they should rename gridiron "interesting" on that basis.

Thanks for reminding me why the best & the brightest left your country 200+ years ago.