Editing Tackle (football move) (section)

==Gridiron football{{anchor|American & Canadian football (gridiron football)}}==<!-- This section is linked from [[Tackle for loss]] -->
[[File:Navy-UMass.jpg|thumb|[[College football]] game: [[Navy Midshipmen football|Navy]] quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada (center) is tackled by [[UMass Minutemen football|Massachusetts]] defenders [[James Ihedigbo]] (left) and Charles Walker (right).]]
In [[American football]] and [[Canadian football]], to tackle is to physically interfere with the forward progress of a player in possession of the ball, such that his forward progress ceases and is not resumed, or such that he is caused to touch some part of his body to the ground other than his feet or hands, or such that he is forced to go out of bounds. In any such case, the ball becomes [[dead ball (American football)|dead]], the down is over, and play ceases until the beginning of the next [[football play|play]].

A tackle is known as a [[quarterback sack]] when the [[quarterback]] is tackled at or behind the [[line of scrimmage]] while attempting to throw a pass. A '''tackle for loss''' is a tackle that causes a loss of yardage for the opposing running back or wide receiver. This happens when the quarterback is sacked, when either a rusher or a receiver is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, or when the ball is fumbled behind the line of scrimmage and was picked up by an offensive player who does not manage to move past the line before being tackled. When a player who does not have the ball is taken down, it is generally referred to as a block.

Tacklers are not required to wrap their arms around the ball carrier before bringing him to the ground; in fact, the ball carrier is often "tackled" by the defender taking a running start and hitting the ball carrier to knock them to the ground. Tackles can also be made by grabbing the ball carrier's jersey (or even hair, should it be long enough and allowed to dangle freely from beneath the helmet) and pulling him to the ground. As mentioned above, the referee can declare that a play is dead if the ball carrier's forward progress has been stopped, even if he has not actually been taken to the ground.

To protect players from potentially catastrophic injury, there are some restrictions on tackles and blocks. At no time may a defensive player tackle an offensive player by grabbing the facemask of their [[football helmet|helmet]]; doing so incurs a 15-yard penalty and the victimized team is awarded a new set of downs. Although [[spearing (gridiron football)|spear tackles]] are allowed in gridiron football, a player may not use his helmet to tackle an opponent as the technique can cause serious injury to both players (more often the tackler, due to the force of reaction on the tackler, which is apt to be beyond the limit that the neck can handle) and also warrants a 15-yard penalty as well as a fresh set of downs if committed by the defending team; this is known as "spearing the player". A similar penalty is assessed to any player attempting to make contact with his helmet against another opponent's helmet, which is known as a [[helmet-to-helmet collision]]. Grabbing a ball carrier by the pads behind his neck and pulling him down is known as a "horse collar", a method which has been made illegal at all levels of American football.

It is also illegal to tackle a player who has thrown a forward pass (generally a quarterback) after he has released the ball; doing so is called "roughing the passer" and incurs a 15-yard penalty and a fresh set of downs for the team with the ball. However, in the NFL a player can continue forward for one step, which means that often a player who is committed to attacking the quarterback will still make a tackle. Place kickers and punters are afforded an even greater protection from being tackled.

Once the play is ruled complete, no contact is permitted; a player who makes contact with an opponent after the play is charged with "unnecessary roughness" and his team is assessed a 15-yard penalty.

Blocks that [[clipping (American football)|occur in the back of the legs and below the knees]], [[glossary of American football#C|initiated below the waist]], or [[clothesline (disambiguation)|clothesline]]s are also generally prohibited and players who use them are subject to much more severe penalties than other illegal tackles. However, a player who plays on the line ''can'' block below the knees ([[cut block]]) as long the block is within five yards of the line and the player they block is in front of them and not engaged by another blocker ([[chop block (American Football)#Chop Block|chop block]]).

In the [[National Football League]] (NFL), tackles are tracked as an unofficial statistic by a scorekeeper hired by the home team. Though the statistic is widely cited, the league does not verify that the counts are accurate.<ref>{{cite news |last=Clark |first=Kevin |title=The NFL's Make-Believe Stat |date=October 9, 2012 |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390444897304578044610803692432 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151219210026/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390444897304578044610803692432 |archive-date=December 19, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

On November 12, 2022, [[Carlton Martial]] of Troy recorded his 546th tackle to break the Division I FBS record for most tackles in a career.<ref>{{cite news|title=Martial breaks tackles record; Troy rallies for victory|newspaper=Dothan Eagle|date=November 12, 2022|url=https://dothaneagle.com/sports/college/troy/martial-breaks-tackles-record-troy-rallies-for-victory/article_795a49dc-62f0-11ed-a8cd-df59599ff8c1.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Troy LB Carlton Martial sets NCAA record for career tackles|work=ESPN.com|date=November 12, 2022|url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/35012136/troy-lb-carlton-martial-sets-ncaa-record-career-tackles}}</ref>