Quarterback scramble


A quarterback scramble or scramble is an impromptu maneuver or run in gridiron football by a quarterback. If a quarterback is under pressure by an opposing team's defense, he may run forward, backward, or laterally in an attempt to avoid being tackled behind the line of scrimmage—a quarterback sack. A scramble is not usually a designed play, but instead is the action of a quarterback to avoid being sacked by the defense or an improvised run forward to gain yardage if an opportunity presents itself. Scrambling is mostly forbidden in six-man football, which requires that the quarterback relinquish the ball before it crosses the line of scrimmage.