Competeion committe outlines 3 major potential changes for safety

[Dpantherman]

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 22, 2010 5:35 PM ET

NFL Competition Committee co-chairmen Jeff Fisher and Rich McKay said today at the annual league meetings in Orlando that while overtime has been the most-discussed topic from their recent recommendations to the league owners, the committee's highest priority was making changes to promote player safety.

Fisher, the Titans' head coach, outlined three recommendations for rules changes that the Competition Committee:

1. Standardize protection for defenseless players.

2. Protect ball carriers whose helmets come off by blowing the play dead.

3. Expand the rule protecting long snappers from being hit immediately after a snap.

McKay said everyone in the league has had a "very positive" reaction to those three recommendations.

Of the three, the one that sounds like it has the greatest potential to affect games is the first one. Fisher also said that "a player in the grasp whose progress has been stopped now becomes a defenseless player," which would mean that if one defensive player grabs and stops a running back but doesn't tackle him, and then a second defensive player comes in and hits him, that would be a 15-yard penalty.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/03/22/competition-committee-outlines-three-major-changes-for-safety/

[The Saltman]

Stop changing shiit.

[SorthNarolina]

When they say "hit" the ball carrier do the mean just all out laying into him?

I would hope they wouldn't discourage gang tackling.

[KillerKat]

Of the three, the one that sounds like it has the greatest potential to affect games is the first one. Fisher also said that "a player in the grasp whose progress has been stopped now becomes a defenseless player," which would mean that if one defensive player grabs and stops a running back but doesn't tackle him, and then a second defensive player comes in and hits him, that would be a 15-yard penalty.

that is f**king bullshit. tell the rb to stop running if he gets grabbed then.

[Baschski]

That first rule is ridiculous. 90% of the time, if a good RB is "stopped," he's going to break free if he can't be hit and tackled while "stopped." J-Stew does that all day without the rule.

[R0CKnR0LLA]

This will be Stewart every play if only one player is allowed to tackle him at a time...