Red zone (gridiron football)

Common card · No. 453943

In gridiron football, the red zone (RZ), also known as the red area, is the area of the field between the 20-yard line and the goal line. Though some professional stadiums may have a decorative stripe indicating the 20-yard line (usually either team colors, or a red-white-blue stripe; some fields have it placed at the 25-yard line instead), the zone is not red-colored, and merely a statistical delineation. The term is mostly for statistical, psychological, and commercial advertising purposes (radio networks have been known to sell sponsorship of the red zone whenever the home team enters it). It is said to be a place where the chances of scoring are statistically higher. The term has been used since the early 1980s. Being closer to the end zone, play while in the red zone involves closer cramping of the offense and defense. The short field of play means safeties have a smaller area to worry about defending, wide receivers do not have to run as far, and passes are not thrown as far. Though...

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