Why do punters stand so far back?

[Pats726]

Why are field goals always 17 yards away from the marking on the field of play?

Actually it's usually 8 yards behind the LOS...the extra 10 is beacuse the goal posts are 10 yards back at the end of the endzone. At one time it was 7 yards back..but with blocked kicks etc..it was deemed better a yard back..8.

 

[BTTA]

BB actually talked about this in a presser last year. There is an ideal distance. Too close, and the push from the line can get you. Too far, and the angles from the side are too oblique and a rusher can get to the punter quickly.

Are you suggesting that the people who do this for a living have studied this issue over the decades and thought it through already? Belichick?

 

[Grogan's neck roll]

I can understand if that is a rule-of-thumb common practice, but the way you say it implies it's an offical rule. And I can't find that rule (using the rulebook Miguel posted). In fact, the rule below seems to contradict you. The only possible allowance I can see for running into a kicker who is too close to the line would be (b), "caused by the kicker’s own motions", and I can't see how a kicker 5 or 6 yards behind the line of scrimmage would necessarily fall under that provision. Searching the entire document for "seven yards" and "7 yards" yields nothing.

Rule 12, Section 2.
Article 6 No defensive player may run into or rough a kicker who kicks from behind his line unless such contact:
(a) is incidental to and after he has touched the kick in flight;
(b) is caused by the kicker’s own motions;
(c) occurs during a quick kick;
(d) occurs during a kick or after a run behind the line;
(e) occurs after the kicker recovers a loose ball on the ground; or
(f) is caused because a defender is blocked into the kicker.
Penalty: For running into the kicker: Loss of five yards from the previous spot, no automatic
first down. (This is not a personal foul). For roughing the kicker or holder, loss
of 15 yards from the previous spot. (This is a personal foul, and also disqualification
if flagrant).
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES
(1) Avoiding the kicker is a primary responsibility of defensive players if they do not touch the
kick.
(2) Any contact with the kicker by a single defensive player who has not touched the kick is running into the kicker.
(3) Any unnecessary roughness committed by defensive players is roughing the kicker.
Severity of contact and potential for injury are to be considered.
(4) When two defensive players are making a bona fide attempt to block a kick from scrimmage
(punt, drop kick, and/or placekick) and one of them runs into the kicker after the kick
has left the kicker’s foot at the same instant the second player blocks the kick, the foul for
running into the kicker shall not be enforced, unless in the judgment of the Referee, the player
running into the kicker was clearly the direct cause of the kick being blocked.
(5) If in the judgment of the Referee any of the above action is unnecessary roughness, the penalty
for roughing the kicker shall be enforced from the previous spot as a foul during a kick.
A. R. 12.13 Kicker A1 in punt formation muffs a snap. He recovers on the ground and then kicks. A1 is run
into, blocked, or tackled by B1 who had started his action when A1 first recovered.
Ruling: Legal action by B1.
A. R. 12.14 A1 receives a snap. He starts to run but after a few strides, he kicks from behind his line. As A1
kicks, he is tackled or run into.
Ruling: The kicker is to be protected, but the Referee should use his judgment when ordinary
line play carries an opponent into such a kicker or at any time when it is not obvious that a kick
is to be made (quick kick).
A. R. 12.15 Fourth-and-12 on B30. On a field-goal attempt which is not good, receiver B1 runs into the kicker
without touching the ball.
Ruling: A’s ball fourth-and-7 on B25. Running into the kicker. If the field goal had been good,
no penalty would be enforced on the succeeding kickoff, since it was not a personal foul.

I don't have access to the NFL rule book, but I do know the NCAA rules, and the protection a kicker gets there is based on being in a "scrimmage kick formation" which is where there is someone to receive the snap at least 7 yards behind the ball with no one in position to receive a hand to hand snap (the QB position). I thought the NFL rule book might be similar in its wording, but apparently not.

 

[loofasisgeek]

Are you suggesting that the people who do this for a living have studied this issue over the decades and thought it through already? Belichick?

That's a loser mentality. The status quo isn't right just because it is the status quo!

 

[Pedrorocks458]

It's just a risk/reward thing. Oftentimes rushers come within inches of the punter. It's not worth the risk of getting a punt blocked for the reward of a few feet. They stand back far enough that the risk is almost negligible unless there's a catastrophic missed assignment.

That's why punters are desired that are two-step punters. That extra step and time that three-step punters use makes them much more likely to get blocked.

 

[PatsFaninAZ]

That's a loser mentality. The status quo isn't right just because it is the status quo!

Sometimes that's right. But other times, things are the way they are for a reason.

When teams punt the ball from inside their own 5 yard line, it always looks dangerous to me. It looks cramped, and rushed, and the punts are often bad. Yes, occasionally, a big leaguer can make a big league play like the Bills did last week. But how many inside the end zone punts have you seen that ended up being returned virtually in field goal range.

Add me to the list that thinks that, much like 90 foot distance between home and first base just turns out to be almost exactly the distance that a big leage infielder making an average play needs to get an out on a grounder, the yardage that teams have settled on for punts is because it turns out to be the point that has the best mix of protection and distance. Sure, once in a generation, you get a guy like Ichiro that makes the geometry wrong, and Maybe Moorman is a freak who can rip off 75 yarders with abreviated run up. Doesn't mean the geometry is wrong for everyone else.

The other part is that most NFL punters CAN kick the ball further than they do, you know. The problem is that they lose control or risk out kicking the coverage. There is a lot more to punting than just distance.

 

[gomezcat]

At some stage, punters (or special teams coaches) decided that the best way to punt was up the middle with a maximum of time in the air. For that, you need to have enough time to get all the power you can into the kick and so the punter stands a long way back.

To someone who has watched (or played) rugby, NFL punting seems slow-motion, almost statuesque. The alternative that you could envisage would be to kick from closer with a quicker release. In that case you would sacrifice some power.

But what if you sacrificed hang time and punted for a longer distance with a lower trajectory? Aren't you risking out-kicking your coverage? Yes, but what if you kick to the sidelines? I just watched the Titans (didn't get the name of the punter) kick to the sidelines deliberately to avoid Reggie Bush. 46 yards AND NO RETURN. Wouldn't we all settle for a net punting average of 46 yards? And you could give your punt coverage unit the afternoon off.

It would take some practice and technique to organize this and I'm not sure that any of the NFL's current special teams coaches are that innovative, but sooner or later, I think, it should be tried.

I'm with you on this. If a good Rugby kicker can turn the full back (in this case, the equivalent of the punt returner) and kick it into touch, then why can't a punter? Given that Football fields are less wide and you can kick out without the ball having to bounce (which it sometimes has to do in Rugby), then it should be easier to do.

 

[Pujo]

That's a loser mentality. The status quo isn't right just because it is the status quo!

It's not wrong to question, but it doesn't mean you're actually going to go and build a better mousetrap. At the very least, you can sleep at night knowing that someone's thought about it and it's not completely arbitrary.

As far as scrimmage kick formation, the kicker/punter doesn't get the protection, the long snapper does. Scrimmage kick protection protects the long snapper from a direct charge (though charges where contact is made with both the snapper and guard is allowed).