Why do football teams "defer" after the coin toss?

Question

What's the point of defering to other team after you win a coin toss? Is there some advantage I'm missing?

Answer 1

No...its all about what you want to set the tempo of the game with.Some teams with a killer Def want to come out and smack the other team right away.Others with good Off want to march right down the field asap and demoralize the other team.

Answer 2

Here are the rule regarding a coin toss:

1. The toss of coin will take place within three minutes of kickoff in center of field. The toss will be called by the visiting captain before the coin is flipped. The winner may choose one of two privileges and the loser gets the other:

(a) Receive or kick

(b) Goal his team will defend

2. Immediately prior to the start of the second half, the captains of both teams must inform the officials of their respective choices. The loser of the original coin toss gets first choice.

As other have correctly noted there can be a psychological impact of "going first" and perhaps scoring first in them game. Another school of thought is that getting the ball first in the second half is more meaningful. Momentum is a powerful thing in football, so some times try really hard to score before half time and than try to get the ball in the third quarter to keep up the momentum.

Sometimes games in bad weather or in overtime will be decided by a field goal. If the game might be decided by a late field goal, some teams would rather than the choices that will give them the wind their backs late in the game so that any field goals might be assisted by the wind.

Answer 3

When a team "defers" they retain the right to chose at the half whether they want to kick or receive, but the other team gets the choice of which goal to defend. As a High School Football official I see no real advantage unless the team who defers just wants to see what their opponents offense is going to look like, or as others have said to make a statement with their defense first. It is more of a phyc. game than any thing else.

Answer 4

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Why do football teams "defer" after the coin toss?
What's the point of defering to other team after you win a coin toss? Is there some advantage I'm missing?

Answer 5

I think it's a psycological thing that players do. When you kick off, you are getting a feel of how your offense has to respond. Did the other team come out weak or strong. That way the other offense gets mentally psyched before it's their turn. Defense usually doesn't have a preference to be on the field before or after the offense after all, they usually aren't the primary weapon for winning - the offense is. Plus, if you are the team that defers and you run up the score before half time, it's an even bigger blow to the opposing teams psche cuz you get the ball right back.

Answer 6

Nfl Coin Toss Rules

Answer 7

I think it's a way of saying, "Our team can handle anything dealt to us."

My source says, "The winning team may "defer" its choice to the start of the second half, not "defer" the choice to the other team (although the effect is to allow the other team to make the choice at the beginning of the first half)."

So really it's a strategist's strategy: rather than deciding how to play when the team's barely warmed-up, they decide after seeing how things are turning out!

Answer 8

I'm glad that after reading all of the answers given, that someone actually gave "weather conditions" as one of the factors for deferring after winning the coin toss. Football, at least in my youth, was an outdoor game, played in all sorts of weather conditions, wind, rain, fog, snow, ice. Unlike many stadiums today that prefer to use domes, semi-domes, etc., which house the wimpy fans who couldn't take bad weather conditions to watch their team play. I love watching football when it's soaking wet and muddy. You could always tell who was playing and who wasn't. Plus, the football seems to become just like the "greased pigskin" that footballs were once made of. Boo - hoo now they are leather.....

Answer 9

It's because many games are close or leads easy to overcome at half time. Many teams want to have the advantage in the second half by getting the ball first. Plus, you don't want to put the other team at an advantage in the second half even when you have the lead. There is nothing else the sportscasters pay attention to more than a comeback. You don't want to be the subject of ridicule.

Answer 10

In sudden death overtime, you still have a chance to win if the other team doesn't score of only gets two points, you know you need six to take them out and may not settle for two. There are a lot of reasons like that. Give the offense a little rest. You have a strong defense. You have to consider the whole game strategy sometimes. Sun and wind can make kick off difficult and are otherwise factors. You can usually figure it out at the time.
Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Aren't you supposed to be answering questions?

Answer 11

It means you will get the choice to kickoff or receive to start the second half.I have seen it where one team deferred and the other team chose to kickoff.Then they got the ball to start both halves.Most of the time teams defer is because they have a strong defense or weather conditions.