{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.fumble","code":"thing-q2721589","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q2721589/","name":"fumble","alternateNames":[],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.37","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Activities and processes","entryKind":"thing","plane":"ACT","domain":["ACT.EVT"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"In American and Canadian football, a fumble occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring, leaving the ball live so that either team may recover it.","purpose":"Let an agent explain the fumble as a game event, relay how the rulebooks define it and what follows, and keep it apart from muffs, incomplete passes and the everyday sense of fumbling.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Requires prior possession and control, unlike a muff","A forward pass that is not caught is incomplete, not a fumble","The ball stays live, unlike a play ruled dead when the runner is down","Recovery by the defence is a turnover"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"rule","name":"Rule","description":"How the event is defined.","layers":[{"id":"definition","name":"Definition","description":"Possession and loss.","findings":[{"id":"definition-finding","name":"Definition","description":"Possession and loss.","questions":[{"text":"What counts as possession and control before a loss of the ball becomes a fumble?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"When is a runner down so that a lost ball is not a fumble?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"league-differences","name":"League differences","description":"Rules by league and level.","findings":[{"id":"league-differences-finding","name":"League differences","description":"Rules by league and level.","questions":[{"text":"How do the rules differ between professional, college and Canadian football?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which rulebook edition applies to the game in question?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"boundaries","name":"Boundaries","description":"What a fumble is not.","layers":[{"id":"muff","name":"Muff","description":"Touching a ball not possessed.","findings":[{"id":"muff-finding","name":"Muff","description":"Touching a ball not possessed.","questions":[{"text":"How does a muff differ from a fumble?","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"Which kicks and passes can be muffed?","kind":"definition"}]}]},{"id":"incomplete-pass","name":"Incomplete pass","description":"The passing arm question.","findings":[{"id":"incomplete-pass-finding","name":"Incomplete pass","description":"The passing arm question.","questions":[{"text":"How do rules separate a fumble from an incomplete forward pass?","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"How has that rule been revised over time?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"aftermath","name":"Aftermath","description":"What happens after the ball is loose.","layers":[{"id":"recovery","name":"Recovery","description":"Who may recover and advance.","findings":[{"id":"recovery-finding","name":"Recovery","description":"Who may recover and advance.","questions":[{"text":"Who may recover a fumble, and when may the recovering team advance it?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"What happens when the ball goes out of bounds?","kind":"definition"}]}]},{"id":"review","name":"Review","description":"Officiating and replay.","findings":[{"id":"review-finding","name":"Review","description":"Officiating and replay.","questions":[{"text":"How do officials and replay review rule on a possible fumble?","kind":"action"},{"text":"What evidence is needed to overturn a call?","kind":"measurement"}]}]}]},{"id":"records","name":"Records","description":"Statistics and history.","layers":[{"id":"statistics","name":"Statistics","description":"How fumbles are counted.","findings":[{"id":"statistics-finding","name":"Statistics","description":"How fumbles are counted.","questions":[{"text":"How are fumbles, fumbles lost and forced fumbles recorded?","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"Which source holds the official record?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"notable-plays","name":"Notable plays","description":"Famous fumbles.","findings":[{"id":"notable-plays-finding","name":"Notable plays","description":"Famous fumbles.","questions":[{"text":"Which fumbles are cited as historically significant?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the account sourced from an official or reputable record?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Explain the rule and cite the rulebook and season used.","Summarise fumble statistics from official records."],"mustNot":["Present one league's rule as universal.","Claim to overturn or confirm an official ruling.","Use fumble data to support match-fixing or betting manipulation."],"requiresHuman":["Any official ruling on a play."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Contact in loose-ball scrambles carries injury risk.","Statistics shape player reputations and contracts, so they must be accurate."],"affectedParties":["Players","Officials","Fans and bettors relying on accurate records"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody owns the event; the league or governing body defines it and the officials rule on it.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["League rulebooks","Official game statistics"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q1706492","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"turnover","type":"related","note":"when the defence recovers"},{"target":"muff","type":"related","note":"a muff is touching a ball not yet possessed"},{"target":"incomplete pass","type":"related","note":"a key replay question"},{"target":"gridiron football rulebooks","type":"related","note":"definitions differ by league and level"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.fumble","Wikidata: Q2721589 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2721589)","Wikidata: Q2721589 registry item"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":["kind: game event note","sports: American football, Canadian football note","outcome: ball remains live; recovery by either team note"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"optional","items":["Ball comes loose from a player who had clear possession","Ball is loose before a knee, elbow or other body part touched the ground, or before the player was ruled down","Players from both teams scramble for the loose ball","A ball carrier losing the ball, often when hit, with the loose ball on the ground and players from both teams diving for it."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain the rule","distinguish a fumble from a muff or an incomplete pass","explain recovery and turnover","relay how fumbles are recorded in game statistics","describe how officials and replay review rule on them"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Pile-ups for loose balls can injure players","Misapplying one league's rule to another","Confusing the sports term with the everyday sense of fumbling"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Official playing rules of professional leagues in the United States and Canada","Collegiate and high-school football rulebooks issued by their governing bodies","League instant replay rules for reviewing fumbles"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["fumble recovered by the offence","fumble lost (turnover)","forced fumble","fumble returned for a touchdown","fumble out of bounds"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q2721589: fumble","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2721589","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Fumble","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fumble","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should league-specific fumble rules be separate entries?","How should the everyday verb sense be signposted?","How should rule changes by season be versioned?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q2721589/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q2721589/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-10-06T10:43:26Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-09T07:30:01+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane ACT: no invented physical properties."},"score":1.0}}