The head coach usually calls timeouts when watching football on television. But what if the running back called a timeout after getting tackled?
In the NFL, timeouts are called by the head coach or any player on the team.
According to the NFL rulebook:
Article 4 Game Timing; Section 5 Timeouts CHARGED TEAM TIMEOUTS 1 The Referee shall suspend play while the ball is dead and declare a charged team timeout upon the request of the head coach or any player.
According to NFL rules, only the head coach or any player can call a timeout. Interestingly, assistant coaches are not allowed to call timeouts.
Your long snapper can legally call a timeout, but your offensive and defensive coordinators cannot.
What Is The NFL’s Timeout System?
During a timeout, a team can strategize or stop the clock in time-sensitive situations. Each team is allowed three timeouts per half.
If you challenge a play and lose, you are forced to use a timeout as you have effectively stopped the clock.
When teams call timeouts late in a half, they can stop the clock between plays.
When you have one last possession to tie the game or win it, timeouts can be the difference.
How many Timeouts can a Team call in a Row?
The NFL rulebook states that teams cannot call back-to-back timeouts.
Each team may request a charged team timeout during the same dead-ball period. However, each team cannot request a second charged team timeout during the same dead-ball period. A referee’s timeout or an automatic timeout may precede a charged team timeout.
A team cannot call two timeouts without a play in between. A kicker cannot be iced twice.
What Happens if a Team calls a Timeout When there are None left?
During the 2016 season, the NFL introduced a new rule to penalize this action. Now, when a team uses a timeout when they do not have one, they will be assessed a delay of game penalty, which moves the ball five yards.
Previously, this would not carry a penalty, but rather announce that the team has no timeouts and reset the clock.
In Football, How Many Timeouts are There?
There will be three timeouts per half in both NFL and college football. Teams cannot carry over their timeouts to the second half if they do not use all three.
The NFL allows each team two timeouts during overtime, while college football allows one timeout per possession during overtime.
In Football, Why do Teams call Timeouts?
You may be wondering why teams use timeouts now that you know all the NFL rules.
When a player is tackled in bounds late in the game, the clock will keep running until a timeout is called.
It is common for teams to stop the clock when attempting a comeback. This allows the offense to kill roughly forty seconds of the game clock between plays.
In each half, a team can stop the clock three times with a timeout.
If a defense sees a matchup they don’t like, a timeout may be called so they can change their personnel.
Another reason for a team to call a timeout is to psych out the kicker of the opposing team.