In
, a reception, also known informally as a catch, is part of a
passing play in which a player in bounds successfully catches (receives) a
forward pass thrown from a friendly
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
behind the
line of scrimmage
In gridiron football, a line of scrimmage is an imaginary transverse line (across the width of the field) beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun. Its location is based on the spot where the ball is placed after the end o ...
. After making the catch, the receiver will then proceed to run towards the opposing
end zone carrying the
ball and try to score a
touchdown
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...
, unless the
play ends due to him being
down
Down most often refers to:
* Down, the relative direction opposed to up
* Down (gridiron football), in American/Canadian football, a period when one play takes place
* Down feather, a soft bird feather used in bedding and clothing
* Downland, a ty ...
ed or forced
out of bounds.
Yardage gained from the passing play are credited to the catcher as his receiving yards.
If the pass is not caught by anyone, it is called an
incomplete pass or simply an "incompletion". If the pass is caught by an o