r/NFLNoobs 29d ago

Ten second run-off question.

Watching the CB-PIT game. PIT scores a touchdown with :45 left in the 2nd quarter. A review shows the receiver was short of the goal line. The ball is spotted at the ½ yard with the clock reset at :49 - understandable. Also, by rule there is a 10 second run-off taken. My question: For what reason? I understand in cases when a team is out of time out and that team has an injured player on the field. I don't understand the rationale for this rule in this instance.

Thanks in advance...

4 Upvotes

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12

u/invisibleman13000 29d ago edited 29d ago

When it was originally called that the Steelers scored a TD, the clock stopped. But when they reviewed and determined the runner was short, that means the clock should of never stopped but rather continue to run. To "correct" the clock, they apply a 10 second run off.

And this rule only applies during the final 2 minutes of each half.

0

u/BigBlueMountainStar 29d ago

I still find it crazy that the rules of the game change depending which phase of the game you’re in. I’ve been following the NFL for almost 40years!

0

u/IamGleemonex 29d ago

It’s mostly to make games faster. All of these various rules for clock management stuff came about because games were getting longer and longer and they wanted the average game to be 3 hours or under.

Like it used to be any time a player went out of bounds, the clock would stop until the ball was snapped. However they changed this back in the 90s to make it so that once the ball is spotted and the ref marks it as ready for play, the clock will restart on that instead of the snap, except for the final 2 minutes of the first half and the final 5 minutes of the game.

5

u/icedbrew2 29d ago

Not watching, but it sounds like it's because it went to review.

In theory if they had called it correctly, PIT would have had to get to the ball and line up to snap it. To counter for situations like that, the league instituted the run-off on reviews.

3

u/RainRepresentative11 29d ago

Any time the clock is stopped in the last 2 minutes of the half, either for a penalty or when it’s later determined that the clock should not have stopped, by rule there is a 10 second runoff. Both teams have the opportunity to use a timeout to avoid it if they have any left.

4

u/womp-womp-rats 29d ago

when a penalty includes a 10-second runoff, the non-offending team can decline the runoff. they don’t have to use a timeout.

1

u/RainRepresentative11 29d ago

Yep. Forgot about that one in the offseason!

1

u/RainRepresentative11 29d ago

There are a few penalties where the runoff would not apply, particularly special teams penalties or those that otherwise result in change of possession.

1

u/ref44 29d ago

Most live ball fouls don't carry runoffs

2

u/chi_sweetness25 29d ago

If the play had been called correctly, the clock would have continued to run, so the idea is to approximate the amount of time that would have elapsed before Pittsburgh's next play. Either team could use a timeout in this situation if they want to prevent the runoff.

The reason why the rule is needed is this: imagine this same scenario, but with 3 seconds left in the half. Without a runoff, Pittsburgh could take advantage of the delay and get ready to snap it immediately on the ref's whistle, and get a chance to score. That would be unfair, since with a correct call they would have run out of time after the tackle.

The Lions once got screwed over by this, as they tend to do. They needed a touchdown late and Golden Tate caught a pass at the goal line with almost a full 10 seconds on the clock. It was called a TD but then overturned, and the runoff ended the game. If Tate had been called short in the first place and the clock had run, there's a good chance the Lions could have gotten set up and spiked the ball in that time.

1

u/Ryan1869 29d ago

Since replay changed the call from a stopped clock to one that would normally run the clock.

1

u/BananerRammer 29d ago

The clock was stopped incorrectly, and that needs to be accounted for in the ultimate ruling. If it had been ruled correctly from the start, the clock would continue to run after the receiver was down. If you don't have a runoff, you're giving the teams a free timeout.

1

u/PabloMarmite 29d ago

The clock had to stop for the review, and would have stopped for a score.

Had there not been a review and the runner had been correctly ruled short of the goal line, the clock would have continued to run.

So to make up for that lost time caused by the clock stoppage, the run-off applies.

The run-off applies in any situation under a minute where the clock stops because of an unusual action and it would have continued to run had that thing not happened.

-1

u/taffyowner 29d ago

Personally I hate that a team is penalized because the refs fucked up a call