Question

A football team needs to move the ball at least 10 yards forward from the original starting point in order to get a first down. Angel runs for 6 yards on the first play. On the second play, he is sacked for −9 yards. At least how many yards does his team need on the third play to get a first down?

Answer 1

13 yards

Explanation:

Given that:

To get a first down, ball needs to be moved 10 yards forward from original starting point.

Distance on first play = 6 yards

on second play = - 9 yards

Hence to get a first down, distance on third play should be:

Let distance needed on third play = d

Hence,

Sum of distance on all three plays should be = 10

6 + (-9) + d = 10

6 - 9 + d = 10

-3 + d = 10

d = 10 + 3

d = 13 yards