American Football Rules - Scrimmage Downs - Dead Ball

Dead Ball

The ball becomes dead, and the down ends, when:

• the ball carrier is downed, as described above;
• a forward pass falls incomplete (it touches the ground before possession is secured by a player);
• the ball carrier or ball touches the sideline or end line or otherwise goes outside the field of play ("out of bounds");
• the ball carrier or the ball, except on a scoring field goal attempt, hits any part of the goalpost (even if it bounces back onto the field);
• a team scores;
• a kick receiver makes a fair catch (waving his arm above his head to signal a fair catch, where the kicking team is not allowed to interfere with him or hit him after the catch, but in return he is not allowed to run), or a member of the receiving team gains possession after a fair catch signal was given;
• a member of the kicking team possesses a kicked ball beyond the line of scrimmage (e.g. "downing" a punt allowed to roll by the receiving team by holding it to stop its roll);
• a kicked ball comes to rest;
• a touchback occurs; or
• under NFL or college rules, on fourth down (or, in the NFL, on any down after the two-minute warning in either half), a ball fumbled forward by the offensive team is recovered by an offensive team player other than the fumbler.

The nearest official typically blows his whistle after the ball becomes dead to alert the players that the down has already ended. If the ball is alive and the official sounds an inadvertent whistle, then the ball still becomes dead, but the team in possession of the ball may elect to have the down replayed or take the spot where the ball was declared dead. If the ball was loose from a fumble, then the ball can be put into play at the spot of the fumble. If the ball was in flight from a kick or a pass, then the down is always replayed.