The NFL sack rule needs to be changed sooner than later
By Brian Miller
The NFL has yet another PR problem and this one involves how players can sack quarterbacks. It’s a rule that needs to be fixed. Immediately.
The NFL has been trying to protect quarterbacks since players like Tom Brady entered the league. These often soft and breakable signal callers are the pride and joy of the NFL and their marketing teams. Nothing is worse than a team losing their top paid player for a season and sometimes more. The new NFL sack rule however isn’t the answer.
On Sunday the Miami Dolphins lost defensive standout William Hayes for the season when he tried to adjust his body during a takedown of Raiders QB Derek Carr. The result was a torn ACL that may very well end his 11 year career. The good news is that Carr was fine and he sacked him correctly as there was no flag.
In Green Bay linebacker Clay Matthews has been flagged for unnecessary roughness three times this year for what should be legal hits. He isn’t the only one. No one is driving the quarterback to the ground, no one has slammed a quarterback into the grass, they are simply making a tackle that outside of that small pocket would be legal anywhere else on the field, unless it’s that QB.
The rule makes no sense. It’s ambiguous and frankly is left solely to the discretion of the referee despite the NFL believing the rule is crystal clear.
"Rule 12, Section 2, Article 9, “A rushing defender may make direct contact with the passer only up through the rusher’s first step after such release (prior to second step hitting the ground); thereafter the rusher must be making an attempt to avoid contact and must not continue to ‘drive through’ or otherwise forcibly contact the passer; incidental or inadvertent contact by a player who is easing up or being blocked into the passer will not be considered significant.”"
That explains nothing but the NFL has been quick to show videos of such and former NFL referee Ed Hochuli believes that the video of Matthews is clear example of what defensive players can not do. To see videos of these Matthews hits, go here.
The rule is in place for a reason. Last year Aaron Rodgers took a hard hit from a Vikings player and was lost for the season with a shoulder injury. The NFL wants to protect its top players but there is a cost and William Hayes is only the most recent example.
Over the last 10 years especially the last five the NFL has been streamlining rules to make player safety a priority but in reality it has not stopped the ACL injuries or even the concussions. It’s simply recognizing the concussion sooner and taking players off the field who may have one.
The NFL is quick to defend its new rule. Following Sunday’s Green Bay game, the NFL took to social media very quickly to defend the rule and the penalty called on the play. Coaches, players, fans, and even members of the competition committee are complaining. The broadcast booth personalities are also not holding back on their disdain. Will the NFL change this rule? Modify or simplify it? No. No they will not.
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The clarity of the rule is very gray and any player it seems that is tackling a quarterback head on is in danger of getting flagged even before the QB hits the ground. It is impossible for two people facing each other not to land on one another with a large portion of weight.
This rule clearly states that a defender can not put a quarterback to the ground with most or all of their weight on him. Yet the NFL has given teams no direction on exactly how they should tackle the quarterback. One to avoid the QB being injured and two allowing the defender to avoid injury.
William Hayes isn’t a star player outside of Miami so the NFL won’t care about him being lost for the season. They might start to think about that when a top brand defender is taken out by the rule for the year. What would the NFL’s thoughts be if this would have been Khalil Mack or Von Miller?
It is becoming increasingly evident that the NFL as many of us used to know will never be the same and that evidence is also clearly pointing to a future where QB’s are not allowed to be touched at all and that is not meant to be tongue in cheek.
The quarterback is the most protected player on the field. A defender can not touch his helmet, can not hit him below the waist, can not put their facemask on their chest. Now they can’t put their weight on him. How do you fix it? You probably can’t but the best start would be a simple tweak to the rule. Driving a quarterback to the ground or blatantly hitting the quarterback with intent to harm would be the first steps.
The NFL is soft in a game that hits hard and fast and because they have no answers for player safety, they make up rules to give the impression that they do. I have to imagine that in Las Vegas, they will soon be taking over/under bets on how many times in a game a player is flagged for roughing the passer. This week against the Patriots and Tom Brady? I would take the over at five.