Two-point conversion
The original United States Football League adopted the two-point conversion rule for its entire existence from 1983 to 1985.
[10][11] Tom Tupa scored the first two-point conversion in NFL history, running in a faked one-point attempt for the Cleveland Browns in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals in the first week of the 1994 season.
The Arena Football League (AFL) has recognized the two-point conversion for its entire existence (in both its original 1987–2008 incarnation and its 2010–2019 revival), allowing for either a play from scrimmage or a drop kick to be worth two points.
In the Alliance of American Football (AAF) (which played part of only one season, 2019), two-point conversion attempts were mandatory after touchdowns.
Both the World Football League and the original XFL revived this concept, making it a point not to institute a two-point conversion rule so as to eliminate the easy kick.
[14][15] Stephone Anthony of the New Orleans Saints became the first NFL player to score a defensive two-point conversion, returning a blocked extra-point kick from Graham Gano of the Carolina Panthers on December 6, 2015.
[17] On December 4, 2016, Eric Berry of the Kansas City Chiefs became the first NFL player to return an interception for a defensive two-point conversion, which was thrown by quarterback Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons.
However, the Texans blocked the extra point attempt by Chargers kicker Cameron Dicker, and D'Angelo Ross scooped up the ball and ran it all the way back for a defensive two-point conversion, the first one ever in an NFL playoff game.
[19][20][21] The first defensive conversion in NCAA Division I-A was scored by Bill Stone of Rice University in a 54–11 loss to Notre Dame on November 5, 1988.
[22][a] The first college player to score a defensive two-point conversion was Rod Beauchamp of Colorado School of Mines on September 3, 1988, in a 36–2 loss to Hastings College, after the Hastings center snapped the ball over the holder's head; even though the rule states the ball cannot be advanced when it hits the ground in this manner, the score stands once the referee declares the game over.
[25] The first defensive conversion following a blocked extra-point kick was scored by Springfield College in a 40–33 win over WPI on September 9, 1988.
Rules in high school, college and professional football dictate that when a safety occurs during a two-point conversion or point-after kick (officially known in the rulebooks as a try), it is worth one point.
[27][28][29][30] A conversion safety can be earned by the defense if the offense retreats with the ball all the way back into its own end zone.
[32] Following a 2021 rule change in college football, triple overtime and thereafter involves teams attempting two-point conversions rather than running plays from the 25-yard line.
The high school football rulebook acknowledges the conversion safety, awarding one point for it, but also immediately ends a play if the opposing team gains possession of the ball, a rule similar to the one the NFL used before 2015.
Thus, any situation that requires the defense to gain possession of the ball cannot result in a conversion safety in games where that rulebook is used.
The coaches' choice of whether to attempt a one- or two-point conversion depends on the game's current score, the amount of time remaining, and their assessment of their team's chance of success.
[35] As long as the probability of converting any individual two-point attempt is higher than 38.2% percent, it is optimal to adopt this strategy.
[36][37] Notably, Texas Longhorns coach Darrell Royal successfully used this strategy to defeat Arkansas in 1969's Game of the Century.
