The NFL nearly lost me last year with their stupid decisions regarding protests, Zeke and resisting the president. This could be the straw that broke the camel’s back. The last 3 decades of taking the claws out of the defense has been sickening enough. This seems like yet another thoughtless knee-jerk response from the clueless Roger Badsmell. This may be my last year of watching football …
What sucks is it is also going to be applied to offense. So, take a look at the .48 mark of the video in this tweet. Both Zeke and the defender lower their helmets right before impact. Will both be penalized? Will both be kicked out of the game? This new rule is stupid as hell.
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I couldn’t agree more. Now a QB has to sneak with his head UP!?!?. And linemen trying to get as low as possible will have to keep their heads UP. Next will be broken necks and the swan song of contact sports in their entirety. Who comes up with this stupid shit?
Understand I’m still thinking about this. I think back to the clothesline, collar tackle and head slap and other old time hits that were allowed. I am for player safety. I do believe the helmet should not be allowed to be used as weapon but I have to consider some things are instinctual like what Iamtdg talks about with players lowering their heads before contact. Not sure any of this makes sense, just thinking and writing at the same time.
It reminds me of something Terry Bradshaw once said, “Dress them in skirts and don’t let anyone hit them…”
The rule hasn’t been finalized yet. We might want to hold off until then.
I think the point is they are trying to get players to stop using their helmet as a weapon, which has been a trend the last 5 -10 years. I agree the wording does not convey that and needs to be improved, I think it has to say something about 'leading with the crown of the helmet (which is more dangerous to the player doing it than to the player being hit with it.)
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Isn’t leading with the crown of the helmet already a penalty?
Yea, but I think it may be limited to between the tackles, and only the ball carrier. Now it doesn’t even need to be near the play.
Why not change the helmet. Make it a soft shell outside while still protecting the inside? Kind of like the soft wall in NASCAR. Make the helmet absorb the blow. It has to be possible, hard helmets have not really protected players in any sport. It always comes down to the padding inside. Not to mention you will quickly not lead with your head when you realize it wont be effective. I never lead with my head in a sand lot game, I used my shoulders. So even though your head will be protected with the soft shell the idea of leading with it will fad away. JMO
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You’re more likely to incur a neck/spinal injury using the crown of the helmet than with your head up. If you ram an object with the crown of your helmet, your vertebrae are lined up straight and there is no place for the generated force of impact to go, so it compresses the discs in the vertebrae leading to ruptures that can (if they are bad enough) damage to the spinal nerves - paralysis. If your head is ‘up’ the neck can move which mitigates some of the force, making it less dangerous. It’s why my HS coaches (all the way back in 1966) emphasized that you always plant your facemask in a guys chest when making a tackle. Tackling with the crown of the helmet is unhealthy.
It’s why there’s been a lot of work strengthening players neck muscles to help avoid concussion.
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Bill In DC: Good example MOOSE. Main reason he had to call it quits.
Dat Nguyen also