[American] Football rules question

The Game Room
1

Are there any rules about how far back the field goal holder can be, or the punter? I know the field goal kicker would want the distance as short as possible, but suppose the head coach wants to be certain that the defense can’t get in to block the attempt. Can the holder set up the ball whatever distance he wants behind the line of scrimmage? Can the punter make his own distance?

-SMM

2

I recall some controversy around Jason Elam’s NFL record-tying field goal some time back, revolving around the fact that the holder had set up a couple feet farther back from the line of scrimmage than normal, in order to extend the kick to the record-tying distance. (Field goal distances are measured from the point of the kick, as opposed to punt distances, which are measured from the line of scrimmage.) So I don’t think it’s mandated by any rule, just tradition.

3

There’s no rule on where to set up. You’ve got to balance

  • desire to be closer to the line, so you don’t have to kick as far
  • desire to be farther from the line, so the other team can’t block the kick/punt
  • ability of your long-snapper to get the ball there accurately
    and finally, you want to be consistent, so the snapper, holder and kicker (or snapper and punter) have a set rhythm. This might be a slight reason to stick to the informal standard, so snappers, holders and kickers don’t have to re-adjust.