In American football, a safety is a scoring play that results in two points being awarded to the scoring team). A safety can be scored in several ways:
- The ball carrier is tackled or forced out of bounds in their own end zone.
- The ball becomes dead in the end zone, with the exception of an incomplete forward pass, and the defending team is responsible for it being there.
- The offense commits a foul in their own end zone).
Once a safety is awarded to the defense, they will be awarded two points and possession of the ball. The offense will need to kick or punt the football to the opposing team. Safeties are the only way the team on defense can score points in football without having possession of the ball.
In terms of the safety position, it is a defensive back who usually lines up 10-15 yards behind the line of scrimmage. The safety position is responsible for covering the deepest part of the field and is the defenses last line of defense. They are responsible for tackling any player who catches the ball deep and intercepting or knocking down any pass thats thrown in the air.
