Editing Fumble (section)

==Rules==
If the ball is fumbled the [[defensive team]] may recover the ball and even advance it to their opponents' goal. The same is true for the offense, but usually, when the offense recovers the ball they simply try to down it. In American football, the offense cannot advance the ball if it recovers its own fumble on fourth down, or in the last two minutes of a half/overtime unless the fumbler recovers the ball (there are no such restrictions in Canadian football). However, the defense cannot advance the ball either if they fumble the ball back to the offense (unless it is recovered by the defensive fumbler). However, if the offense fumbles the ball, the defense recovers, and then fumbles back to the offense, they would get a new first down since possession had formally changed over the course of the play even though the ball had never been blown dead. In American football, there is no separate signal to indicate a fumble recovery. If the offense recovers its own fumble and down it, the official will indicate the recovery by a hand signal showing the next down. If the defense recovers the fumble, the official will indicate with a "first down" signal in the direction the recovering team is driving the ball. Some officials have erroneously used a "first down" signal when the offense recovers its own fumble and the recovery did not result in a first down.

It is not a fumble when a [[forward pass]] is attempted and is not caught. In this latter case, it is simply an [[incomplete pass]]. However, if the receiver catches the ball, but then drops it after gaining control of the ball, that is a fumble.

Any number of fumbles can be committed during a play, including fumbles by the team originally on defense. Most famously, [[Dallas Cowboys]] defender [[Leon Lett]] fumbled during [[Super Bowl XXVII]] while celebrating during his own fumble return.

A sometimes controversial maxim is "the ground cannot cause a fumble". If a player is tackled and loses control of the ball at or after the time he makes contact with the ground, the player is treated as down and the ball is not in play. However, in the [[National Football League|NFL]] and [[Canadian Football League|CFL]], if a ball carrier falls without an opponent contacting him, the ground can indeed cause a fumble. This is because in those leagues the ball carrier is not "down" unless an opponent first makes contact, or the runner is out of bounds. In most other leagues, as soon as the knee or elbow touches the ground, the ball carrier is considered down. It is also possible for the ground to cause a fumble in college football if the ball hits the ground before any part of the ball carrier's body (other than the hand or foot) touches the ground.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Referee|date=2017-07-21|title=Football Ground Rules|url=https://www.referee.com/hesitation-may-not-lead-aggravation/|access-date=2022-01-02|website=Referee.com|language=en-US}}</ref> An example was the fumble by Arkansas quarterback Clint Stoerner vs. Tennessee in 1998.

When a fumbled ball goes out of bounds before being recovered, the result varies:<ref>{{cite web |title=2020 NFL Rulebook Article 8-7-3 |url=https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/2020-nfl-rulebook/#article-3.-fumble |access-date=14 September 2020 |ref=rulebook_fumble_article |archive-date=December 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080528/https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/2020-nfl-rulebook/#article-3.-fumble |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* A fumble going out of bounds between the [[end zone]]s is retained by the last team with possession (in [[Canadian football]], the last team to touch the ball). If the ball was moving backwards with regard to the recovering team, it is spotted where it went out of bounds. If the ball was moving forwards, it is spotted where the fumble occurred (the fumble itself cannot advance the ball).
* If a ball is fumbled in the field of play, goes forward into the opponent's [[end zone]], and then goes over the end line or sideline, a [[touchback]] is awarded to the defensive team.
* If a team fumbles the ball out of bounds in its own [[end zone]] (even if the ball moves forward out of the end zone before going out of bounds), or fumbles in the field of play and the ball then goes into that team's end zone and out of bounds, the result depends on which team caused the ball to enter the end zone. If the possessing team possessed or forced the ball into the end zone, it is a [[Safety (American football score)|safety]], subject to the momentum rules that apply to safeties. If the opponent forced the ball into the end zone, it is a [[touchback]].
** However, in the [[United States Football League (2022)|USFL]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.foxsports.com/stories/usfl/usfl-adds-new-rules-for-2023-brings-back-popular-innovations-from-last-season |title=USFL adds new rules for 2023, brings back popular innovations from last season |work=Fox Sports |date=April 13, 2023 |access-date=September 14, 2023}}</ref> and [[XFL (2020)|XFL]],<ref>{{cite book |url=https://assets.contentstack.io/v3/assets/bltc7f51537c5999ea8/blt60632a5c1f81d194/6398a520f5c9bc21552a6146/XFL_Rule_Book_2023.pdf |chapter=Rule 8, Section 7, Article 3: Fumble |title=2023 XFL Rule Book |publisher=XFL |pages=61–62 |access-date=September 14, 2023}}</ref> a ball fumbled by the offense within the field of play that goes out of bounds in the defensive team's end zone is not a touchback. Instead, the ball is spotted at the spot of the fumble, with the offense retaining possession unless the fumble occurred on fourth down before the offense reached the line to gain, in which case the defense receives possession.

A fumbled ball that is touched by an out-of-bounds player is considered an out-of-bounds fumble, even if the ball never leaves the field of play.

In addition, a [[Punt (gridiron football)|punted]] or place-kicked ball that touches any part of a player on the receiving team, whether or not the player ever gains control, is considered to be live and is treated like a fumble. Also, lateral passes that are caught by a member of the opposing team are recorded as fumbles as opposed to interceptions.