What is holding in football

For example: If the holding occurs on 2nd-and-3, then play is automatically stopped. This "safe zone" allows defenders to make contact with offensive players. Any infraction outside of this zone, however, results in a penalty. While the infraction is the same, defensive holding results in different outcomes. No matter what the game situation is, defensive holding results in a five-yard penalty.

Defensive holding penalties can completely turn a game around when committed. This is why it's very important to train players to avoid holding at all costs. Offenses also have the option of declining a defensive holding penalty. Offensive and defensive holding are two of the most common penalties called in football. Though common, they can also be the most devastating penalties called.

Did you enjoy the post? Do You Want a Free Playbook? YES Please! NO, I hate touchdowns. The Ultimate Guide to Football Defense. Get Access Now. At the end of the play there is a material restriction of Jerry Hughes. However, the rip move illustrated in the clip is a lot like invincibility frames in a video game. The rip makes the lineman immune to a holding call for a short duration.

It could be argued this is still holding but remember our notes above. To explain the rationale take a look at the clip again. A defender using a rip move inherently is lifting the arm of the lineman. Holding calls are rare due to the broad range of options for an offensive lineman to legally use. An array of exceptions makes holding legal, which complicates the matter further.

Perhaps, most importantly for this penalty, the default by rule is to not call holding. Most often, this penalty happens when a defender beats or gets past an offensive lineman, and in an attempt to recover and prevent the defender from getting to the ball carrier , he grabs a part of the defender's body and impedes his path.

It can also happen to tight ends, running backs, and wide receivers, who are much less experienced with blocking and sometimes are asked to block defenders much bigger and stronger than they are, thus are vulnerable to forgetting proper blocking technique.

However, the offensive holding penalty is not always called according to the definition of the rule; linemen hold in some form on nearly every play , but referees tend to only call the more obvious or egregious ones. The offensive holding penalty has the same result across all levels and leagues of football: a loss of 10 yards from what the line of scrimmage was before the play, and any yardage gain or score during the play is negated.

They run a play that goes for 30 yards, but holding is called. As defensive physicality is necessary at the line of scrimmage , there is a five-yard area from the line of scrimmage where a defensive player is legally allowed to use his hands. Outside of that area, a defensive player using his hands will be called as holding. Holding is called when a player does not employ proper open-handing blocking techniques.

As it can be called on both the offense and the defense, holding is one of the most common penalties in football. Like other calls in football, holding is a judgment call, and how it is called depends on the specific situation and officiating crew. Thus, holding calls are occasionally missed throughout the course of games. Offensive holding results in a ten-yard penalty. It is assessed ten yards from the original line of scrimmage, and if it is called, the down is replayed.

For instance, if it is first and ten with the ball on the thirty-yard line and offensive holding is committed, it will then be first and twenty, still from the thirty-yard line.

Any positive yardage accumulated prior to the holding on the play is nullified. Defensive holding is a five-yard penalty, and also results in an automatic first down for the offense. Holding penalties can be extremely damaging to both the offense and the defense.