Football Nation illustration of a runner stretching the ball across the goal line beneath the headline When Does a Score End?

When Does an NFL Scoring Play Actually End?

Sep 20

2 min read

Updated: Oct 10

An NFL scoring play becomes dead when the rule's scoring conditions are satisfied. The whistle and raised arms communicate that result; they do not create a later opportunity to fumble a ball that was already dead.

Part of Football 101. Explore the guide to choose your next topic.

DeSean Jackson jumps in the end zone to complete a touchdown catch during the 2014 Pro Bowl. — DeSean Jackson completes a touchdown catch at the 2014 Pro Bowl. Photo by Lance Cpl. Matthew Bragg via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain as an official U.S. Marine Corps work.

The important distinction is between completing the score and confirming that it survives penalties or replay.

A runner and a receiver face different tests

A runner who already possesses the ball can score when it legally reaches the opponent's goal line before he is down or out. If he loses it afterward, there is no live fumble. If possession was lost first, fumble rules determine what happens next.

A receiver catching a pass in the end zone must complete the catch process. Holding the ball across the plane while airborne is not enough if the catch remains unfinished.

Near the boundary, possession, inbounds status and the applicable goal line rule all matter. A close replay needs to show the ball and those events together.

A kick must finish its scoring flight

A field goal requires the entire ball through the proper plane above the crossbar, along with the other legal kick conditions. An upright deflection can still be good. A ball that never completes the required passage is not made good by the official's initial impression.

The rule includes an unusual exception for a ball that passes through and returns untouched through the goal. The scoring standard must be fully satisfied before treating later action as irrelevant.

Dead does not mean unchangeable

A foul during the live play can remove an apparent score. Replay can establish that the runner was down first, lost possession before the goal line or never completed the catch.

A foul after a valid score is a different enforcement problem. Officials can keep the points and assess a penalty on the try or ensuing kick as the applicable rule directs.

A touchback also ends a down but awards no points. Do not confuse an end zone result with a scoring result.

When a defender intercepts a pass and returns it for a touchdown, the play is called a pick six. The six refers to the touchdown points, before the try.