by surprise and using an onside player (sense 2) to recover the ball and gain a first down or even a touchdown. A rule change in the early 1970s that allowed the receiving team to block before gaining possession made the quick kick even more difficult to execute successfully, so it is rarely attempted today. rouge see: single. safety A defensive position on scrimmages, also called free safety. Typical formations include a single safety, whose main duty is to cover wide receivers. See also defensive back. A two-point score. The defence scores a safety when the offence carries or passes the ball into its own goal area and then fails to run, pass, or kick the ball back into the field of play; when this term is used in this sense, it is also referred to as a safety touch. short kick-off Deliberately kicking the ball just over 10 yards on a kick-off in an attempt to make an onside kick. Short kick-offs are usually directed towards the sideline (left sideline for a right-footed kicker) to give members of the kicking team time to get downfield to recover it. It is illegal procedure if the ball is recovered before it has gone 10 yards downfield. single A one-point score. The kicking team scores a single when the ball is punted, drop kicked, or place kicked into the receiving team's end zone (without scoring a field goal or hitting the goal post) and the receiving team fails to run or kick the ball back into the field of play. The single also is scored if the kick goes out of bounds in the end zone, except on a kickoff. On a kickoff, the single is scored only if the ball stays inbounds and is not run out of the zone, or if the defence puts the ball out of bounds in the end zone. spearing An unnecessary roughness penalty of 15 yards imposed when the player drives his helmet into an opponent in an unnecessary and excessive manner. The referee's signal is a chopping motion above the head. third down The final of a set of three downs. Unless a first down is achieved or a penalty forces a replay of the down, the team will lose control of the ball after this play. If a team does not think they can get a first down, they often punt on third