Forgive the length; but it couldn't be helped.
I’m writing this half tongue-in-cheek; but I think it’s an interesting subject worthy of discussion. In short, this situation involves the (desired) balance between offense and defense and when offensive blocking restrictions no longer apply.
Play: Field goal attempt. Snap goes over the holder’s head. Mad chase for the loose ball ensues. B1 pushes A1 in the back in an actual attempt to get to the ball. Rule 2-3-5b, supported by Case Book play 9.3.5A, clearly tell us that this is a legal act.
But what if it’s A1 who pushes B1 clearly in the back during this loose ball play? Blocking restrictions for A – and more liberal “use of hands” for B - are in place to provide a balance between the offense and the defense. We know A can legally block in the back only in the free blocking zone against an opponent who was in the zone at the snap (Rule 2-17-4)
Now the rub. Rule 2-3-4c is worded nearly identically to 2-3-5b and suggests to many folks that “all bets are off” for A (other than PF, PI, or Illegal Use of Hands) if A1 “may legally touch or possess the (loose) ball”. I can find NO Case Book play legitimizing the act for the offense (unlike for the defense).
Questions:
In the interest of “balance”, shouldn’t A be subject to established blocking restrictions (holding, BBW, blocking in the back) even though the ball is loose? One could argue that A1 could “push/pull/ward off” an opponent without illegally blocking.
If Rule 2-3-5b and 2-3-4c are almost identical, why do the rules editors choose to provide ONLY a Case Book play legitimizing the act for B?
Does the absence of a Case Book play covering A’s right to block in the back during a loose ball tacitly approve/disapprove (of) it? Rule 2-37 – defining a “rule” - is interesting.
Case Book Play 9.2.1h tells us (ineligible) A players may “block an opponent to keep him from getting to a tipped/muffed pass” (loose ball). Does this mean it’s okay for A to block in the back during that moment?
Can K or R block in the back during a free kick (in their attempt to get to the loose ball) – since both “may legally touch or possess the ball”?