Okay, so the other day I was watching a football game with my buddy, and something weird happened. There was this quick, underhand toss – more like a flick, really – from the quarterback to the running back. It wasn’t a forward pass, more sideways, and it got us debating: does that even count as a pass? Or is it some kind of handoff?
We started by pulling out our phones, naturally. Gotta love the internet for settling these kinds of arguments, right? We searched around, looking at different football forums and rule explanations.
The Confusion
At first, it was pretty confusing. Some people were saying anything that leaves the quarterback’s hand and goes to another player is a pass, no matter what. Others were saying it has to be a forward throw. It all felt very unclear with lots of opinions.
Digging Deeper
We kept digging. We found some official-looking rulebook stuff. I am not going to lie, it was tough to fully understand. But we focused on the parts about “forward passes” and “backward passes,” or “lateral passes.”
What We Found
- A forward pass, the kind that advances the ball downfield, has some strict rules. It has to be thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, and only one is allowed per down.
- But a backward or sideways pass – that “pitch” we were talking about – is different. It’s not limited like a forward pass. You can do it anytime, anywhere on the field.
Figuring it Out
So, to answer the question of “does a pitch count as a pass in football?”, we realized it depends on how you define “pass.” If you mean any throw, then yeah, a pitch is a type of pass. But it’s not a forward pass. It’s a backward or lateral pass, with its own set of rules.
We concluded that that quick, underhand toss is technically a pass – a lateral pass. It’s not a handoff because the ball isn’t directly handed from one player to another. There’s a brief moment where the ball is in the air. Our debate was put to rest, all thanks to a little online research.
