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Quarterback sack

 

 
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Quarterback sack
 
 
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In American football
American football

American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, is a competitive team sport known for mixing strategy with physical play....
 and Canadian football
Canadian football

Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played chiefly in Canada in which two teams of twelve players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide , attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area ....
, the sack occurs when the quarterback
Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American football and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the center , in the middle of the Lineman ....
 is tackled
Tackle (football move)

File:Afl tackle.jpgMost forms of football have a move known as a tackle. In most cases this move involves bringing an opposing player to the ground....
 or run out of bounds
Out of Bounds

Out of Bounds is a 1986 action-thriller feature film directed by Richard Tuggle and starring Anthony Michael Hall....
 behind the line of scrimmage
Line of scrimmage

In American Football and Canadian football a line of scrimmage is an imaginary transverse line crossing the American football#Rules across its narrower dimension, beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun....
 before he can throw a forward pass
Forward pass

In several forms of football a forward pass is when the ball is thrown in the direction of the opponent's end line....
. This often occurs if the opposing team's defensive line, linebacker
Linebacker

File:Glennon_under_center_ACC_championship.jpgA Linebacker is a position in American football and Canadian football that was invented by football coach Fielding Yost of the University of Michigan....
s or defensive backs are able to quickly get past blocking
Blocking (American football)

In American football, blocking is a legal move occurring when one player obstructs another player's path with his body. The purpose of blocking is to prevent defensive players tackling the ball carrier, or to protect the quarterback, in the pass, in the backfield hand-off to other backs, or when the quarterback attempts to run with the ball...
 players of the offensive team, the quarterback's protection; or if the quarterback is unable to find, in a reasonable amount of time, an available eligible receiver
Wide receiver

A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible receiver to catch a forward pass....
 including running back
Running back

A running back is the position of a player on an American football or Canadian football team who usually lines up in the History of American football positions#Offensive Backfield....
s and tight end
Tight end

The tight end is a position in American football on the offensive team. The tight end is sometimes the last man on the offensive line, but has a slightly different build and, in some cases, a different role than other linemen....
s who can catch the ball, allowing the defense a longer opportunity to tackle the quarterback.

In the NFL, it is possible to record a sack for zero yards.






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Encyclopedia


In American football
American football

American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, is a competitive team sport known for mixing strategy with physical play....
 and Canadian football
Canadian football

Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played chiefly in Canada in which two teams of twelve players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide , attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area ....
, the sack occurs when the quarterback
Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American football and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the center , in the middle of the Lineman ....
 is tackled
Tackle (football move)

File:Afl tackle.jpgMost forms of football have a move known as a tackle. In most cases this move involves bringing an opposing player to the ground....
 or run out of bounds
Out of Bounds

Out of Bounds is a 1986 action-thriller feature film directed by Richard Tuggle and starring Anthony Michael Hall....
 behind the line of scrimmage
Line of scrimmage

In American Football and Canadian football a line of scrimmage is an imaginary transverse line crossing the American football#Rules across its narrower dimension, beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun....
 before he can throw a forward pass
Forward pass

In several forms of football a forward pass is when the ball is thrown in the direction of the opponent's end line....
. This often occurs if the opposing team's defensive line, linebacker
Linebacker

File:Glennon_under_center_ACC_championship.jpgA Linebacker is a position in American football and Canadian football that was invented by football coach Fielding Yost of the University of Michigan....
s or defensive backs are able to quickly get past blocking
Blocking (American football)

In American football, blocking is a legal move occurring when one player obstructs another player's path with his body. The purpose of blocking is to prevent defensive players tackling the ball carrier, or to protect the quarterback, in the pass, in the backfield hand-off to other backs, or when the quarterback attempts to run with the ball...
 players of the offensive team, the quarterback's protection; or if the quarterback is unable to find, in a reasonable amount of time, an available eligible receiver
Wide receiver

A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible receiver to catch a forward pass....
 including running back
Running back

A running back is the position of a player on an American football or Canadian football team who usually lines up in the History of American football positions#Offensive Backfield....
s and tight end
Tight end

The tight end is a position in American football on the offensive team. The tight end is sometimes the last man on the offensive line, but has a slightly different build and, in some cases, a different role than other linemen....
s who can catch the ball, allowing the defense a longer opportunity to tackle the quarterback.

In the NFL, it is possible to record a sack for zero yards. The QB must pass the statistical line of scrimmage to avoid the sack.

Yardage

In the NFL
National Football League

The National Football League is the Major North American professional sports leagues American football Sports league in the United States. It is an unincorporated 501#501.28c.29.286.29 association controlled by its members....
 yards lost on the play are added as negative yardage to the team's passing totals; however, the quarterback's individual passing total stats remains unchanged. Before that change in record keeping, tackling a player behind the line of scrimmage resulted in a loss from that player's (passing) statistics, even if it were fairly obvious a rush play had been intended. NCAA
College football

College football is American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American University, colleges, and United States military academies....
 continues to subtract sack yardage from individual rushing totals.

Rules

To be considered a sack the quarterback must intend to throw a forward pass. If the play is designed for the quarterback
Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American football and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the center , in the middle of the Lineman ....
 to rush the ball, any loss is subtracted from the quarterback's rushing total. If the quarterback's intent is not obvious statisticians use certain criteria, such as the offensive line blocking scheme, to decide. Other unique situations where a loss reduces a quarterback's rushing total (not a sack) are "kneel downs" (used to run time off the game clock), and aborted plays, such as a fumbled snap that the quarterback
Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American football and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the center , in the middle of the Lineman ....
 falls on to maintain possession.

A player will receive credit for half of a sack when multiple players contribute to the sacking of a quarterback.

Term

The term "sack" was not widely used before ca. 1970; previously one would simply refer to a player's being tackled behind the line (of scrimmage), in so many words. The NFL
National Football League

The National Football League is the Major North American professional sports leagues American football Sports league in the United States. It is an unincorporated 501#501.28c.29.286.29 association controlled by its members....
 only began to keep track of sacks in 1982.

Origin

"Quarterback sack" was first coined by hall of fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, Ohio, United States, on September 7 1963 with 17 charter inductees....
 defensive end Deacon Jones
Deacon Jones

David D. "Deacon" Jones is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League for the St. Louis Rams, San Diego Chargers, and the Washington Redskins....
. He felt that a sack devastated the offense in the same way that a city was devastated when it was sacked.

See also

  • The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
    The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game

    The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game is a book by Michael Lewis released in 2006 about American football. It features two dominant storylines....
     - non-fiction
    Non-fiction

    Non-fiction is an document or representation of a subject which is presented as fact. This presentation may be accurate or not; that is, it can give either a true or a false account of the subject in question....
     book by Michael Lewis
    Michael Lewis (author)

    Michael Lewis is an American contemporary non-fiction author. His bestselling books include Liar's Poker, The New New Thing, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, and The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game....


External links

  • , an article describing the controversy over the sack record