This year’s annual NFL owners meeting had a variety of topics to discuss. Among other topics, the NFL competition committee submitted six rule proposals to the league owners, of which two were passed early Tuesday.
The first rule change in 2013 will be to make “peel-back” blocks in the tackle box illegal. A peel-back block is when a defender is contacted moving parallel or backward and typically occurs near the end zone. This type of block involves a player blocking below the waist, which has led to an increase in lower body injuries. The league specifically cited the season-ending injury sustained by Brian Cushing after a peel-back block by an offensive lineman. The punishment for such blocks has now been upgraded to a 15-yard penalty, which is sure to motivate coaches to promote discipline from lineman.
The other rule that is being modified is to increase player safety on special teams. The rule offers better protection to those players involved on punts, field goals, and extra points attempts. More than six players on defense cannot be aligned on one side of the center when trying to block a punt or kick. Additionally, players trying to block such kicks must have their entire body outside of the long snapper’s pads. Players responsible for snapping the ball on these plays are in a vulnerable position and will no longer have to worry about being blind-sided after a snap.
Both of the new rule proposals on special teams will draw 5-yard penalties for the aforementioned infractions.
Another interesting rule that will be in effect is that defensive players who attempt to shove their teammates into offensive players at the line of scrimmage as part of a block attempt. Any player who attempts to shove a player to make a block or a tackle at the line will be penalized 15-yards for “unnecessary roughness.”
Fans and players are going to need to adapt to the changing NFL landscape, and the league is not yet done making changes. The additional four rule proposals will be voted on Wednesday. Among the rules being voted on in the infamous “Tuck Rule,” re-tooling an illegal challenge flag for a replay, and offensive players using the crown of their helmet to make contact with a player outside of the tackle box.
