What Is a Safety in American Football? Rules and Scoring

Scoring in football almost always belongs to the offense. The safety is the exception. It is the one score the defense earns by pinning the offense back against its own goal line, and when it happens the two points come with an unusual bonus: the defense gets the ball back too.

What a safety is

A safety is worth two points and is awarded to the defending team. The most common way it happens is when an offensive player is tackled with the ball in his own end zone. Because the offense started the play close to its own goal line, the defense pushes the ball carrier back over it and brings him down there.

It is the only score in football that the defense produces by making a stop rather than by carrying the ball into the opponent’s end zone.

Ways a safety can be scored

A safety is not limited to a tackle. It is called whenever the ball becomes dead in the end zone and the team responsible for it being there is the offense:

• The ball carrier is tackled in his own end zone.
• An offensive penalty is committed in the offense’s own end zone (for example, holding).
• The offense fumbles the ball out of bounds through its own end zone.
• A snap or backward pass flies out of the back of the end zone.
• A blocked punt goes out of the back of the punting team’s end zone.

What happens after a safety

This is what makes the safety unique. After scoring, the team that conceded the safety must give the ball back with a free kick from its own 20-yard line. So the scoring team collects two points and then receives a kick, giving it a strong chance to score again shortly after. That combination of points plus possession is why a safety can quietly swing a close game.

How the safety compares

Score	Points	How it happens
Touchdown	6	Ball carried or caught in the opponent’s end zone
Field goal	3	Ball kicked through the uprights
Safety	2	Offense tackled or penalized in its own end zone
Extra point	1	Kick after a touchdown

Why it is so rare

Safeties are uncommon because offenses avoid deep passing or risky runs when backed up near their own goal line. Coaches will often take a conservative play or even a deliberate one to avoid the two-point gift. When a safety does occur, it is usually the result of a defense generating heavy pressure or the offense making a mistake in the worst possible field position.

One footnote for rules fans: an extremely rare one-point safety exists, scored on a conversion attempt after a touchdown, but it is so unusual that most fans will never see one.