Two-minute warning
Encyclopedia
In the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

, the two-minute warning is given when two minutes of game time remain on the game clock in each half of a game, i.e. near the end of the second and fourth quarters. There is an additional two-minute warning in the rare event only two minutes remain in an overtime period. If the football is in play when the clock reaches 2:00, the two-minute warning is called immediately after the play concludes, when the ball is declared dead. The two-minute warning stops the game clock in all cases.

History

- This event dates from the days in the NFL when the official game time was kept by a member of the officiating crew, with the stadium clock being unofficial. Its purpose was a checkpoint to ensure that the teams knew how much time remained in the game. Since the late 1960s the NFL stadium clock has been official, but by then television was an important factor in the NFL, so the two-minute warning was retained as a commercial break and to serve as "tension building" time, and thus has become an important part of the game's flow.

Rules

In addition to those practical purposes, over time some rules have evolved that are unique to the final two minutes of each half. There is no special event at the ends of the first and third quarters, aside from swapping end zones, so there is no two-minute warning then, only at the halves:
  1. If a player is injured and his team has timeouts in that half remaining, a timeout is automatically charged to that team to allow the injured player to be removed from the field, unless the clock had stopped as a result of the previous play.
  2. The following situations result in a 10-second game clock runoff if the team in possession of the ball and is trailing or the game is tied and has no timeouts in that half remaining. The half or game can expire on this runoff.
    1. If a player is injured with no remaining timeouts, the team is awarded a free timeout without penalty to allow the injured player to be removed from the field for the first occurrence; subsequent occurrences result in a 5-yard penalty.
      1. Exception: No runoff or yardage penalty is assessed if the immediate previous play ended with a run out of bounds or the commission of a defensive penalty.
    2. One of the following six fouls is committed by the offense. Following the runoff, the game clock will resume again once the ball is set. The runoff can also occur if a team declines to use a timeout if it has timeouts remaining.
      1. False start
      2. Intentional grounding
      3. Illegal forward pass beyond the line of scrimmage
      4. Throwing a backwards pass out of bounds
      5. Spiking or throwing the ball away after a down (unless after a touchdown)
      6. Any other intentional act that causes the clock to stop
  3. If the defensive team is trailing with no timeouts, a defensive foul with 40 or fewer seconds can be declined, allowing the half or game to end.
  4. The half or game cannot end on a defensive foul unless it is declined by the offense.
  5. All replay reviews must be initiated by the replay assistant. Coaches' challenges cannot be used inside the two-minute warning.
  6. If the quarterback is sacked inside the two-minute warning, the clock continues to run. (At all other times, the clock stops on a quarterback sack.)
  7. If an offensive player fumbles, only the fumbling player can advance the ball if the ball is recovered by the team in possession of the ball. If any other offensive player recovers the ball, the ball is placed at the spot of the fumble. (This rule also applies to fourth down at any point in the game.)


The two-minute warning in the fourth quarter is an important milestone in the game for a team that is in the lead and looking to run out the clock
Running out the clock
In sports, running out the clock refers to the practice of a winning team allowing the clock to expire through a series of pre-selected plays, either to preserve a lead or hasten the end of a one-sided contest.- American football :...

. If the leading team has the ball on first down
Down (football)
A down is a period in which a play transpires in American and Canadian football.-Description:A down begins with a snap or free kick , and ends when the ball or the player in possession of it is declared down by an official, a team scores, or the ball or player in possession of it leaves the field...

 with less than two minutes to go in the game and the opposing team has no timeouts remaining, the quarterback can often safely end the game by "taking a knee
Quarterback kneel
In American football, a quarterback kneel, also called taking a knee, genuflect offense, or victory formation occurs when the quarterback immediately kneels to the ground after receiving the snap. It is primarily used to run the clock down, either at the end of the first half or the game itself, in...

" three times in succession without risking injuries or turnovers
Turnover (football)
In American football, a turnover occurs when the team with the ball loses possession of the ball, which is then gained by the other team. The two events that are officially classified as "turnovers" are fumbles or interceptions In American football, a turnover occurs when the team with the ball...

. This is because at the end of each play, the offensive team can take up to 40 seconds to start running the next play.

NCAA

The NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

, which is the governing body for college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 in the United States, does not have a two-minute warning, although the official NCAA rule book requires the referee to inform the field captain and head coach of each team when "approximately two minutes of playing time" remain in each half, in the event that a visual game clock (e.g., on the stadium scoreboard) is not being used as the official game timepiece. The only time the two-minute warning was used in a college football game was in 1931 Bucknell vs. Temple after a power outage and a regular wrist watch was used to keep track of the time in the game.

Other football leagues

The two-minute warning was also used in NFL Europa. The CFL
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

 has a three-minute warning
Three-minute warning (football)
In the Canadian football, the three-minute warning is given when three minutes of game time remain on the game clock in the first and second halves of a game. The three-minute warning stops the game clock in all cases...

. The recently revived Arena Football League
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League is the highest level of professional indoor American football in the United States. It is currently the second longest running professional football league in the United States, after the National Football League. It was founded in 1987 by Jim Foster...

 and its former minor league, af2
Af2
AF2 was the name of the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football rules and style of play. League seasons ran from April through July with the postseason and ArenaCup...

, have a one-minute warning
One-minute warning
The One Minute Warning or The One Minute Timing Rule is a rule in the Arena Football League that dictates the flow of the game in the final minute of a half.- Procedure :...

.

External links

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