A quarterback is standing in the middle of the field 60 yards from his goal line. He passes the ball to a player 12 yards to his left on the 55 yard line. How long was the pass?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The quarterback is 60 yards from his goal line, and the player is on the 55-yard line, so the horizontal distance is 5 yards (60 - 55). The player is also 12 yards to the left, forming a right triangle with legs of 5 yards and 12 yards. Using the Pythagorean theorem, the hypotenuse (the pass length) is √(5² + 12²) = √(25 + 144) = √169 = 13 yards.

A Quarterback Is Standing in the Middle of the Field