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A drop kick is someone's dropping a ball and then kicking it when it bounces off the ground. It contrasts to a punt wherein the dropper kicks the ball without letting it hit the ground first.
American and Canadian Football
In American football and Canadian football, one method of scoring a field goal is by drop-kicking the football through the goal.
The drop kick was often used as a surprise tactic. The ball would be snapped or lateraled to a back, who would perhaps fake a run or pass, but then would kick the field goal instead.
This method of scoring worked well in the 1920s and 1930s, when the football was rounder at the ends (similar to a modern rugby ball). Early football stars such as Jim Thorpe and Paddy Driscoll were skilled drop-kickers.
In the 1930s, the ball was made more pointed at the ends. This made passing the ball easier, as was its intent, but made the drop kick obsolete, as the more pointed ball did not bounce up from the ground reliably. The drop kick was supplanted by the place kick, which cannot be attempted out of a formation generally used as a running or passing set. The drop kick remains in the rules, but is seldom seen, and rarely effective when attempted.
In Arena football a drop-kicked extra point counts for two points rather than one; a drop-kicked field goal counts for four points rather than three. Seemingly the game's inventors hoped that a team trailing by four points on an apparent final play might attempt a very dramatic drop kick in order to tie the game. However, the additional incentive has not been enough of an enticement to produce many drop kicks after the first few years of Arena play. The absence of drop-kicking from any other level or variety of gridiron football in the present day means that there is no pool of experienced and capable drop kickers for the Arena league to draw from, and the play would in any event occur too seldom to seem to be worth the amount of practice time that would have to be devoted to it for it to be executed at any real level of proficiency; in practice a pass off of the rebound nets above the endlines which, if completed, would result in six points and a win for the team down by four points, rather than a tie and overtime, probably has at least an equal and possibly a superior chance of success.
Australian Rules football In Australian Rules football, a similarly named and executed kick was used in general play, particularly after a free kick was awarded. It was popular as players could kick the ball long distances, and the ball's backwards rotation was reasonably easy for teammates to catch (a major feature of the game).
A variation known as the "stab pass" or more poetically, the "daisy cutter" involved an abbreviated follow-through and travelled on a notably low trajectory, which made it very useful for short-range passing.
The drop kick and stab pass gradually disappeared from the game by the 1980s, as it was unreliable, particularly on wet grounds, and players were coached to always use the drop punt kicking style to avoid having to make a decision on what kind of kick to perform.
Rugby football In Rugby Union and Rugby League, a drop kick can be used to score a goal by kicking the ball above the crossbar and between the uprights. Typically, it is only used for goals scored during open play - place kicks are usually used for penalties and conversions. However, in the Sevens version of the game, all conversions must be drop kicks. A drop goal is worth 3 points in Rugby Union and 1 point in Rugby League. Conversions are worth 2 points in both codes.
Two finals in the Rugby Union World Cup have been decided by drop goals in extra time. South Africa's victory margin in 1995 came from a Joel Stransky drop goal in extra time. Jonny Wilkinson duplicated the feat for England in 2003.
Drop kicks are used to restart play in Rugby Union (1) after points have been scored from the centre spot; (2) for a 22 drop-out when the ball is touched down in the in-goal area by the defending team, the attacking team having kicked or taken the ball into the in-goal area; and (3) to kick off after a score or to start a half. Rugby League has a drop-out from the center of the goal line after the defending team touches down in goal.
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