Bradley Roby TD and a Question on Interception Return Yardage (1 Viewer)

[Reality Football]

A question for all of you fellow amateur statisticians or commishes out there...

So, Denver's Bradley Roby was credited Sunday for a 49-yard interception return TD in the box scores for Sunday.

If you watch the video, though, the ball is tipped at about the SD 49, but intercepted by Roby at about the DEN 49, maybe a little shy of that, but definitely past the midfield point.  Some of the early news posts called it a 51-yard INT return for a TD, since Roby does indeed cover a distance of ~51 yards returning the ball back for the score. Yet the box scores charted the distance of the return from the initial point where the pass was broken up at the 49.

My question is -- should this have been a 51-yard return, or is the 49-yard assessment correct as is? Does interception yardage start accumulating at the point of the initial pass disruption, or is it at the spot where the defense fully takes possession and starts running it back? 

I know that a stat correction will be issued in a few days if the initial scoring was in error. Still, I'm curious about trying to figure out the statistical reasoning behind the play distance.  Also, defensive scores of 50+ yards are worth double in my league, so of course, I have a pragmatic interest in play as well.

 

[Chasers Dawg]

Usually use yardage from where ball is caught by defender

that is why there are Ints for TDs that are over 100 yds

 

[Hankmoody]

It's where it's caught.  It will probably get corrected Thursday.

http://www.nflgsis.com/gsis/documentation/stadiumguides/guide_for_statisticians.pdf

[SIZE=17.5pt]Interception[/SIZE][SIZE=17.5pt]s[/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Interception yardage is computed from the point where the impetus of the act of interception ends and the intercepting player begins forward or backward movement on his own. This includes the end zone area of the intercepting player, except that a player making an interception in his own end zone shall not be credited with any return yardage if the ball becomes dead behind his own goal line.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Example I: [/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Player intercepts the ball five yards deep in his end zone, and returns to his 7-yard line. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Scoring:12-yard return.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Example II: [/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Player intercepts the ball five yards deep in his end zone, starts to run, but stops one yard short of the goal line, where he downs the ball or is tackled for a touchback. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=15pt]Scoring: One interception for no yards; the ball never left the end zone[/SIZE]

 

[Reality Football]

That statisticians' guide is a cool resource, and I did peruse it a bit yesterday. Though, it doesn't seem to directly address weird scenarios like a backwards tip and interception. 

I think my hope was that since a Denver defender initially started the tip at the SD 49, and Roby caught it 2 yards back, that those two yards might be thought of as something akin to a 2 yard loss, and the 51 yard return would ultimately be assessed as a play with a net 49 yards of return yardage.

Alas, Hankmoody, you are probably correct. 3-5 season here I come!

 

[Hankmoody]

That statisticians' guide is a cool resource, and I did peruse it a bit yesterday. Though, it doesn't seem to directly address weird scenarios like a backwards tip and interception. 

I think my hope was that since a Denver defender initially started the tip at the SD 49, and Roby caught it 2 yards back, that those two yards might be thought of as something akin to a 2 yard loss, and the 51 yard return would ultimately be assessed as a play with a net 49 yards of return yardage.

Alas, Hankmoody, you are probably correct. 3-5 season here I come!

Sure it does:

[SIZE=15pt]where the impetus of the act of interception ends and the intercepting player begins forward or backward movement on his own[/SIZE]

It's very clearly a 51 yard return (if your original description is correct, I did not see they play).