<Li> If a play ends such that the game clock continues running, use a timeout . </Li> <Li> If the ball is still alive while the clock runs out and the team with the ball is still trailing, do everything within the team's power to keep the ball alive until it can be advanced to the end zone . Often this incorporates a series of lateral and backward passes to avoid the ball carrier being tackled and the game ending . </Li> <P> A team that is tied or trailing by one or two points but is within the red zone (and thus in easy field goal range) seeks to burn a specific amount of time off the clock, such that they can stop the clock with five or fewer seconds on the clock, so that their placekicker can kick a field goal with no time remaining and win the game . </P> <P> A team on defense has little control over the pace of the game . It may expend its timeouts to ensure that there is adequate time left on the clock, in case the team regains possession . The defense can make decisions on how to stop the ball carrier based on whether the team is trailing or leading: if the offense is trying to conserve time, the defense can foil that by tackling the ball carrier in - bounds before they can get out of bounds . Defenses likewise can safely devote more personnel to the perimeter and leave the center of the field less defended, as an offense that cannot afford to keep the clock running will have to throw toward the sidelines . Various rules ensure that the defense cannot deliberately commit fouls to manipulate the game clock, and in the most extreme such cases, an unfair act can be declared and the game forfeited to the offense . (Likewise, if the offense commits fouls to burn off time and get extra downs, the clock is reset and unsportsmanlike conduct is called on them .) </P>

When does the clock stop in professional football