Question about American Football

Can you pass the ball backwards at anytime? If yes is there a limit of number of times for each play?

You can pass backwards at anytime, anywhere, as many times as you want.

Thanks. How come teams don't use that more often? You'd think they could do some set plays.

Players in the NFL are extremely fast, just tossing the ball around the field is very dangerous. Trick plays are hard to pull off. Look up some "hook and ladder" plays on youtube and you'll see the rare times it works well.

Ya freak the NFL isn't a playground game big boy's only.

josh200612 wrote:

Ya freak the NFL isn't a playground game big boy's only.

LMAO.

Big boys that can't pass or catch a ball properly, got it.

freakzilla wrote:

Big boys that can't pass or catch a ball properly, got it.

Maybe u could teach them. I hear u are awesome at catching some1s balls!!!

timthebim wrote:

freakzilla wrote:

Big boys that can't pass or catch a ball properly, got it.

Maybe u could teach them. I hear u are awesome at catching some1s balls!!!

ZASSAP!

No but seriously you can lateral the ball as many times as you want but the problem is american football is designed around set plays. Everyone has a set place they are supposed to be, a set place they are supposed to go, and a specific way they are supposed to get there. Introducing chaos on one side usually only makes it easier for the other to succeed with organization.

freakzilla wrote:

Big boys that can't pass or catch a ball properly, got it.

Oh freak you silly bastard you.

Freak the reason you see very few backwards passes is that plays develop very fast with defenders closing in rapidly. Space is constantly decreasing. The risk for error then becomes higher. An incomplete backwards pass is still a live ball in American football, and can be picked up and played by defenders. The risk-reward ratio for a lost possession behind the line of scrimmage makes plays like that undesirable.

I didn't mean behind the line of scrimmage. I meant something like the QB passing it 20 yards to a wr who then passes it backwards to the rb that was running near him.

You guys know more than me about it though so I'll take your words on it.

freakzilla wrote:

I didn't mean behind the line of scrimmage. I meant something like the QB passing it 20 yards to a wr who then passes it backwards to the rb that was running near him.

You guys know more than me about it though so I'll take your words on it.

Like the play at 2:50?



Its called a hook and ladder, but is mostly just used in desperate circumstances in place of throwing a Hail Mary. Teams don't want to risk mishandling and fumbling. Plus, in the NFL most of the time defenders are closing in very quickly. Ed Reed is the only person who tries to pitch the ball everytime he's getting tackled lol

Yeah like that. That was a great play. It's not hard to catch and pass a ball. Maybe it's different for you guys because you a brought up to play a different style but here in Rugby League it's the most important aspect so we are taught from a very young age.

backwards passes if dropped are live balls. A loss of possession isn't worth the small risk of passing it away from the goal in order to possibly escape a defender. The chance of making a subsequent gain on the play beyond the original point the backwards pass happened is very small.

They usually end up looking like this when they happen.

That's because their passing and catching talent isn't up to scratch. All those catches were easy.

freakzilla wrote:

That's because their passing and catching talent isn't up to scratch. All those catches were easy.

Its because it isn't a worthwhile thing to waste time on practicing

i used to play rugby union and have have also thought at times that rugby style passes and offloads could be utilised more. however, there are relatively few players on the field that ever handle the ball, i can't imagine too many NFL centres running an attacking line off the shoulder of a slot receiver to take an offload through a gap. NFL balls are also a slightly different shape and smaller than a rugby ball, making them harder to handle.

the way the game flows and the offside laws are also very different.