Author Topic: Fair Catch on Free Kick  (Read 3197 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline bigjohn

  • *
  • Posts: 348
  • FAN REACTION: +22/-36
Fair Catch on Free Kick
« on: August 29, 2011, 07:36:38 AM »
When a player makes a FC signal but another K player catches the ungrounded kick in the air, shouldn't the officials be blowing it dead?  I know the catcher is not provided protection but someone should not be allowed to blast him from 5 yards away either. The tackler may not have seen the FC signal but the officials need to blow it dead pretty quickly, don't they.

ret66482

  • Guest
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #1 on: August 29, 2011, 07:58:24 AM »
Correct that if a player makes a FC signal and another player catches the ball it should be blown dead (provided the kick is beyond the neutral zone on scrimmage kicks), because it cannot be advanced.  In the post you stated that another "K" player caught the ball.  This could be KCI (if a "R" player is in the area).  Either way the ball is dead!
Rule 6-5-5: No receiver may advance the ball after a valid or invalid fair-catch signal has been given by any R player.

Offline bigjohn

  • *
  • Posts: 348
  • FAN REACTION: +22/-36
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #2 on: August 29, 2011, 10:49:21 AM »
typo, meant R player.

Offline bama_stripes

  • *
  • Posts: 2936
  • FAN REACTION: +115/-27
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #3 on: August 29, 2011, 11:49:10 AM »
The covering official should sound his whistle as soon as the kick ends.  But he has to be very careful to make sure the play is over -- we get more inadvertant whistles on this type of play than on any other.

Offline bigjohn

  • *
  • Posts: 348
  • FAN REACTION: +22/-36
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #4 on: August 29, 2011, 12:21:43 PM »
So if the ball is caught, contact should not be able to cause a fumble, right? What if the K player is five yards away when the ball is caught and he still plows the kid. The one I saw was probably IHC(face tackling) but I won't go there.

Offline bama_stripes

  • *
  • Posts: 2936
  • FAN REACTION: +115/-27
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #5 on: August 29, 2011, 01:52:18 PM »
The down ends when the kick is caught.  If the receiver is not the player who signalled for a FC, he's not automatically protected.

It's purely a judgment call on the part of the covering official as to whether the contact is a dead-ball personal foul.  The official basically has to decide if the opposing player could have avoided the contact but chose not to.

Offline bigjohn

  • *
  • Posts: 348
  • FAN REACTION: +22/-36
Re: Fair Catch on Free Kick
« Reply #6 on: August 29, 2011, 06:47:38 PM »
Agreed.