Safety (football)

In American football and Canadian football, a safety refers to two positions in the traditional defensive backfield setup, the strong safety and the free safety.

Additionally, a safety or safety touch is the act by which one team gains two points when an opponent possessing the ball is tackled or downs the ball in his own end zone, or runs out of bounds in his own end zone. If a safety were to occur while a team is attempting an extra point following a touchdown (which would be very unusual), the score would only be worth only one point.

Usually, a safety occurs when the offensive unit is backed up very close to its own end zone and players on the other team trapping the ball carrier in the end zone. Although very rare, it is not unheard of for the offensive unit team to be 30 or more yards away from its end zone, only to have the ball carrier chased into his own end zone before getting tackled. Sometimes, a team will intentionally give up a safety, especially if they have a lead and believe that, on the free kick, they can pin the opposing team deep in its own territory.

In both codes the team giving up the safety must also give up possession to the opposing team. In American football this is done by means of a safety kick or free kick, where the ball is kicked from the 20 yard line by means of a punt, dropkick, or placekick without tee. In Canadian football the team scoring the safety gets the same options it would have after conceding a field goal - it can either receive a standard kick-off from the kicking team's 35 yard line or it can assume possession of the ball on its own 35 yard line. Unlike in the American code, an onside kick is allowed should the ball be kicked off.