A safety in football is a scoring play worth two points for the defense, most often scored when the defense tackles the ball carrier in his own end zone. The team that gave up the safety then has to kick the ball away from its own 20-yard line, so a safety costs two points and possession of the ball.
The word also names a defensive position. The safeties are the defensive backs who line up deepest, the last line of defense against long passes and runs. This page covers both meanings, starting with the scoring play, and the rules come from the 2026 NFL rulebook and the 2026 NCAA rules. For how scoring works more broadly, see American football for beginners.
How a safety is scored
Under Rule 11, Section 5 of the NFL rulebook, a safety happens in two situations. The first is when a team sends the ball behind its own goal line and the ball becomes dead there in that team's possession, or goes out of bounds behind that goal line. The second is when the offense commits a foul in its own end zone and the defense chooses to enforce the penalty at that spot.
The key word in the rulebook is impetus, meaning the force that put the ball into the end zone. If the offense created it, by snapping, handing off, passing, carrying or fumbling the ball, the offense is responsible for the ball being there. The most common ways to give up a safety:
- A quarterback sacked or a ball carrier tackled in his own end zone
- A runner stepping out of bounds in his own end zone
- Offensive holding in the end zone, with the defense enforcing the penalty there
- Intentional grounding by a passer whose entire body and the ball are in his own end zone when he throws
- A fumble that goes out of bounds behind the offense's own goal line
- A punt that hits the kicking team's own goalposts
A short worked example shows the effect on the scoreboard. Team A leads 20-17 but is backed up at its own 2-yard line. Its quarterback is sacked in the end zone. The score becomes 20-19, and Team A must now kick the ball to Team B, which needs only a field goal to lead 22-20.
Plays that look like a safety but are not
Several end zone plays end without a safety, and the impetus rule explains most of them.
- An incomplete forward pass in the end zone is just an incomplete pass. The offense keeps the ball at the previous spot for the next down.
- A touchback, not a safety, happens when the impetus came from the opponent. A kickoff or punt that the receiving team downs in its own end zone is the classic case.
- The momentum exception: if a defender intercepts a pass or recovers a fumble in the field of play and his momentum carries him into his own end zone, where he is downed, it is not a safety. In the NFL the ball goes to his team at the spot where he gained possession.
- If a defender bats or kicks a loose ball into his own end zone, the defense has created a new impetus, and what happens next is judged from that.
College football has the same momentum idea in a narrower form. The NCAA exception applies only when the player gains possession between his own 5-yard line and his goal line. When the officials are in doubt, the college rule says it is a touchback, not a safety.
What happens after a safety
Two points go on the board for the defense, and then the team that gave up the safety puts the ball in play with a free kick from its own 20-yard line. The rulebook allows a punt, drop kick or place kick, and a tee may be used. College football uses the same rule: a free kick from the 20 that may be a punt, drop kick or place kick.
In the NFL, a safety kick follows the same alignment as a kickoff, with only the kicker's line moved back to the 20. The other kicking players still line up at the receiving team's 40, and the landing zone still runs from the receiving team's 20 to its goal line. From the 20, the ball has to carry at least 60 yards before it lands to reach that zone. If it lands short, the receiving team can take the ball 30 yards from the spot of the kick, which from the 20 means the 50-yard line.
That is why a safety is often described as worth more than two points. The team that scored it gets the ball back right away, usually with decent field position, while the team that gave it up has to kick from deep in its own territory.
The rare one-point safety
After a touchdown, the scoring team attempts a try: a kick for one point or a play from close range for two. Scoring values on a try are different. If a try ends in what would normally be a safety, the opponent gets one point instead of two. Both the NFL and NCAA rules include this.
It almost never happens, because it needs an unusual chain of events. Consider a hypothetical: on a two-point attempt, a defender intercepts the pass at his own 3-yard line, runs backward into his own end zone and is tackled there. He supplied the new impetus, so the offense is awarded one point. One-point safeties are rare enough that most fans never see one live.
Safeties in strategy and overtime
Most safeties are mistakes or great defensive plays, but some are deliberate.
- Intentional safety: a team pinned at its own 1-yard line late in a game may choose to give up two points rather than risk a blocked punt or a turnover near its goal line. It then gets a free kick from the 20, which nobody can rush or block, instead of punting from the back of its own end zone.
- Burning the clock: a team leading by more than two points late in a game may take a safety to run time off the clock, accepting a smaller lead in exchange for fewer seconds left for the opponent.
- In overtime: under NFL Rule 16, both teams are guaranteed a chance to possess the ball, with one exception. If the team that kicked off to start overtime scores a safety on the receiving team's first possession, it wins immediately. Later in overtime, once sudden death applies, any safety wins the game.
Our guide to NFL overtime rules covers the full possession rules.
The safety position on defense
On defense, the safeties are two defensive backs who usually line up deepest, behind the linebackers and often farther off the ball than the cornerbacks. Together with the cornerbacks they form the secondary. NFL youth football materials describe two traditional roles.
The free safety usually lines up farther from the line of scrimmage and follows the ball. He is free to double-cover a receiver or help a cornerback when needed, and he is often the last defender between a ball carrier and the end zone.
The strong safety typically lines up closer to the line of scrimmage, across from the strong side of the offense, which is the side where the tight end lines up. Strong safeties are traditionally seen as run stoppers who also cover tight ends and running backs in the passing game.
Coverage schemes are often described by how many safeties play deep. A single-high look keeps one safety deep in the middle of the field and brings the other closer to the line, as in Cover 1 and Cover 3. A two-high look keeps both safeties deep, each responsible for a share of the field, as in Cover 2 and Cover 4.
Many modern defenses ask both safeties to do both jobs, so the labels free and strong describe where a player lines up on a given play as much as a fixed role.
Safety quick reference
- Value: 2 points to the defense (1 point on a try).
- Most common cause: ball carrier downed in his own end zone.
- Also a safety: offensive foul in its own end zone with the penalty enforced there, intentional grounding from the end zone, ball out of bounds behind the offense's own goal line.
- Not a safety: incomplete pass in the end zone, touchbacks, momentum carrying a defender into his end zone after a turnover.
- After a safety: free kick from the scored-upon team's own 20, by punt, drop kick or place kick.
- Overtime: a safety by the kicking team on the receiving team's first possession ends the game.
- The position: two deep defensive backs, the free safety and the strong safety.
Frequently asked questions
How many points is a safety worth in football?
Two points for the team that scores it, in both the NFL and college football. On a try after a touchdown, a play that would normally be a safety is worth only one point.
Who gets the ball after a safety?
The team that scored the safety. The team that gave it up must free-kick from its own 20-yard line, using a punt, drop kick or place kick, so the scoring team receives the ball.
Can the offense score a safety?
Yes, although it is unusual. If the defense intercepts a pass or recovers a fumble and then retreats into its own end zone and is downed there, the offense is awarded a safety. On a try, the same situation gives the offense one point.
Is a safety the same in college football?
The scoring is the same: two points and a free kick from the 20. The main difference is the momentum exception, which in college applies only when the player gains possession between his own 5-yard line and goal line.
What is the difference between a free safety and a strong safety?
The free safety usually lines up deeper and follows the ball, helping cover receivers anywhere on the field. The strong safety lines up closer to the line on the tight end side and is more involved against the run. Many modern defenses blur the two roles.
Is a safety a common play?
No. Safeties are far less common than touchdowns or field goals, and one-point safeties on a try are rarer still. They usually happen when the offense is backed up near its own goal line.