What is "intentional grounding"

n. (context American football English) An instance when the quaterback throws the ball into the ground or into the crowds to avoid being sack#Verb and losing field position.

In gridiron football, intentional grounding is a violation of the rules where "a passer...throws a forward pass without a realistic chance of completion." This typically happens when a quarterback about to be sacked passes the ball toward an area of the field with no eligible receiver. Were it not for this rule, the quarterback could easily turn the sack into an incomplete pass which, by rule, would advance the ball back to the line of scrimmage.