Item 3. Stopping Clock. A player under center is permitted to stop the game clock legally to save time if, immediately upon receiving the snap, he begins a continuous throwing motion and throws the ball directly into the ground.
Item 4. Delayed Spike. A passer, after delaying his passing action for strategic purposes, is prohibited from throwing the ball to the ground in front of him, even though he is under no pressure from defensive rusher(s). Penalty: For intentional grounding: (a) loss of down and 10 yards from the previous spot; or (b) loss of down at the spot of the pass; or (c) if the passer is in his end zone when the ball is thrown, it is a safety.
See 4-7 for actions to conserve time inside two minutes of either half. Note: If the foul occurs less than 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage, but more than half the distance to the goal line, the ball is to be placed at the spot of the pass.
Rule 4, Section 7
SECTION 7 ACTIONS TO CONSERVE TIME ARTICLE 1. ILLEGAL ACTS. A team is not permitted to conserve time after the two-minute warning of either half by committing any of these acts: (a) a foul by either team that prevents the snap (i.e., false start, encroachment, etc.); (b) intentional grounding; (c) an illegal forward pass; (d) throwing a backward pass out of bounds; (e) spiking or throwing the ball in the field of play after a down has ended, except after a touchdown; or (f) any intentional foul that causes the clock to stop. Penalty: For Illegally Conserving Time: Loss of five yards unless a larger distance penalty is applicable. When actions referred to above are committed by the offensive team while time is in, officials will run off 10 seconds from the game clock before permitting the ball to be put in play on the ready-for-play signal. The game clock will start on the ready-forplay signal unless another rule prescribes otherwise. If the offensive team has timeouts remaining, it will have the option of using a timeout in lieu of a 10-second runoff, in which case the game clock will start on the snap after the timeout.