American Football Study Guide: NFL Rules, Positions and History in 78 Flashcards
Master American football: downs, scoring values, positions, the NFL-AFL merger and rule history from 1869 to 2028, with study tips and updated college facts.
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American football looks chaotic until you know the four ideas everything else hangs on: downs, the line of scrimmage, scoring values and position units. The Flip It deck American Football: NFL Rules & Players (FI7936) has 78 cards in clear blocks. Cards 1-44 cover the rules, field and positions, cards 45-57 the NFL, AFL and Super Bowl, cards 58-66 the rule changes of 1881-1914, and cards 67-78 game management and modern college football.
Study this deck: American Football: NFL Rules & Players
1 / 10What is American football?
Tap the card for the answer · swipe right if you knew it, left if not
Key cards to start with
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| What is a down? | One play; the offense gets four downs to advance at least ten yards |
| What is a touchdown worth? | Six points |
| What is a field goal worth? | Three points, kicked through the uprights |
| What is a safety? | Ball carrier tackled in their own end zone, 2 points to the defense |
| How many forward passes per down? | One, from behind the line of scrimmage |
| What are the field dimensions? | 120 × 53⅓ yards, including two 10-yard end zones |
| What is the play clock? | 40 seconds, or 25 after administrative stoppages |
| When did the AFL-NFL merger take full effect? | 1970, after the 1966 agreement |
What you will learn
Snap, neutral zone, lateral pass, punt, kickoff, PAT and two-point conversion, turnover on downs, interception, fumble, line to gain and the TV yellow line, delay of game, coin toss and deferral. Positions: quarterback, running back, center, wide receiver, tight end, defensive ends and tackles, linebackers, cornerbacks, free and strong safeties, placekicker, holder, long snapper. History: Rutgers vs Princeton (1869), Walter Camp, Pudge Heffelfinger's $500 (1892), the 1905 safety crisis and the birth of the NCAA, the legal forward pass (1906), the six-point touchdown (1912), APFA/NFL (1920), the "Greatest Game Ever Played" (1958), AFC/NFC, rosters of 53 and 105, NIL (2021) and flag football at LA 2028.
How to study it
- Learn scoring as one chain. Cards 9-12 and 60-61 belong together: the touchdown went up to 6 in 1912, the field goal came down to 3 in 1909, then add the PAT (1 or 2) and the safety (2). Make one "scoring" card that asks for all four values and their dates. Then a final score like 23-17 can be worked out in combinations.
- Date-stamp the modern cards. Card 77 says the CFP "replaced the BCS in 2014". That is right, but the playoff expanded from 4 to 12 teams in 2024. Card 76 (House v. NCAA) needs its date: the settlement was approved in June 2025, and revenue sharing with players started on July 1, 2025. Also, the title promises players, but apart from Camp and Heffelfinger the deck names none. Add a few cards for the current quarterbacks you watch.
- Fix one garbled front. Card 74 asks for a "first game and year", but its back describes Harvard choosing rugby-style rules after playing McGill in 1874. Rewrite the front as "Which 1874 series made Harvard prefer rugby-style rules?"
Studying several sports? The same block-by-block approach works for our guide to basketball rules, positions and NBA history.
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