When is a punter a runner?

[UJoking]

With the new fad of "rugby" punting, we see a lot of punters receiving the long snap and starting to run usually to their right, as if faking the punt, only to kick the football as their are running to get the ball to roll when it hits. My question is when is the "punter" a kicker and at what point does he become a runner? I have seen kids running as if they are playing the option game of seeing if they can make the first down and when they realize they cannot, punt the ball at the last second. This puts a lot of pressure on a kid to tackle the "punter" and if he hits him as he decides to punt create a roughing the kicker penalty.

 

[White hat]

A punter is just a ball carrier until he kicks the ball. Once he kicks it, he's a kicker.

If a player hits him, it's running into the kicker or roughing the kicker:

UNLESS one of a few things happens, and one of those things is "Contact is unavoidable because it's not reasonably certain a kick will be made."

So if a punter kicks it a split second before being hit by a would-be tackler, too bad for the punter. (I've had this happen.)

That said, a running punter is not air game to be hit. If he gets the punt off in time that makes contact avoidable, it MUST be avoided.

 

[UJoking]

So this is a subjective call, kin to roughing the passer. So if you were speaking to a football team on this subject, what would you tell them is the best way to judge when the punter is about to become a kicker to avoid this penalty?

 

[White hat]

Well... I'm not a coach...

However, without benefit of film study or knowing a punter's tendencies, I would say if you can tackle a guy with the ball, do it. but you have to remember that once he kicks it, if you CAN avoid contact, you MUST avoid contact. If the ball gets away untouched, then he probably kicked it before anyone was so close that contact is unavoidable and the defender is going to have to be careful.

On the subjective front:

I would make sure rushers are not trying to hit the punter, but are trying to wrap up and tackle. A hit looks a lot different and usually looks like a player is just taking a shot. If he knows the kicker has kicked or a passer has passed, he's not going to wrap up, he's going to just make a collision hit. (In roughing the passer, I give more leeway to a rusher who is wrapping up and appears to be making a tackle. It's easier to believe he thinks the passer still has the ball.) If a punt rusher (or pass rusher) comes in heads up and watches the ball go by him, then continues to deliver a hit, it's probably going to be flagged.

That's just how I would coach them. Don't put any more faith in that than the strategy of any other non-coach.

 

[FBRef]

Originally posted by UJoking:
So this is a subjective call, kin to roughing the passer. So if you were speaking to a football team on this subject, what would you tell them is the best way to judge when the punter is about to become a kicker to avoid this penalty?

That's exactly what it's like and it's the way I explain this situation to fans.

If the QB has released the pass and the defender should be above to avoid contact, it's a foul if he doesn't.

The same principle applies to a"rugby style" kicker.

I think the most important thing to explain to your defenders is that the kicker is NOT "free game" in this situation. Many players, coaches and fans believe that he is but that simply isn't true.