A legal snap depends on the ball, the motion and the receiver. A messy exchange can still leave a live ball.

The type of play and the kick’s first contact decide touchback placement. Here are the NFL’s 20 and 35 yard rules.

A safety awards two points and a distinctive restart: the team that conceded it must kick from its own 20.

Week 2 changed the NFL’s early map. Buffalo and Seattle strengthened repeatable identities, the Rams and Patriots revealed important depth, Carolina rebounded, and the Giants entered a critical injury week.

Tees are allowed on certain free kicks, but field goals and extra points require a different setup.

Most untouched misses give the opponent the kick spot, with a 20 yard minimum. A block or return can change the result.

A good field goal requires a legal kick and the whole ball through the scoring plane. Posts, blocks and high kicks add details.

The team that defended the extra point or two point play receives next, even if it scored on a defensive return.

A flag can erase a conversion, create another attempt or move the kickoff. The timing and type of foul decide.

The NFL uses the 15 for a kick and the 2 for a run or pass. Those are snap spots, with choices after penalties and timeouts.

A completed or awarded fair catch can create a rare chance at three points without a snap. Timing determines the options.

A recovery behind the line can be advanced. A recovery beyond it ends the play, with touching deciding possession.

A forced exit can be legal. A voluntary shortcut or failure to return creates separate problems for punt coverage.

A true simultaneous recovery belongs to the receiving team. A pileup does not automatically make possession simultaneous.

Returners need an unobstructed opportunity to catch an airborne kick, even without a fair catch signal.

Punt enforcement depends on the team, timing and possession. The flag’s location is only one of the relevant spots.

An airborne punt can cross the goal line and stay live. Ground contact, player position and prior touching decide the result.

Returning to the field does not by itself restore a gunner’s right to touch the punt first.

A motionless football can remain live. Officials wait briefly when nobody attempts to recover an abandoned ball.