Question for football fans

[marvda1]

If you are automatically down when you hit the ground and the play is dead, why do they always let at least one man hit you while on the ground?

[WETSU]

1 hour ago, marvda1 said:

If you are automatically down when you hit the ground and the play is dead, why do they always let at least one man hit you while on the ground?

You’re only down like that in college. In the nfl you have to be touched down. As for why it always happens. The officials have some lee way on whether or not the player who laid the hit when the other player is down had time to stop their momentum or at least ease up and try their best to avoid the hit. It’s not easy to stop your body moving full speed in split seconds depending on what’s happening around you and the officials know that so there is a lot of judgement calls on that rule. 

[Destry]

2 hours ago, marvda1 said:

If you are automatically down when you hit the ground and the play is dead, why do they always let at least one man hit you while on the ground?

Runner’s punishment for going down so easy.

[Hookemhorns88]

41 minutes ago, WETSU said:

You’re only down like that in college. In the nfl you have to be touched down. As for why it always happens. The officials have some lee way on whether or not the player who laid the hit when the other player is down had time to stop their momentum or at least ease up and try their best to avoid the hit. It’s not easy to stop your body moving full speed in split seconds depending on what’s happening around you and the officials know that so there is a lot of judgement calls on that rule. 

This does not apply to QBs getting hit these days with the "targeting" rule.  If you look at a QB wrong you will get penalized.