» A defender who hits a defenseless receiver in the head with his helmet or any part of his body will draw a 15-yard unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty and be subject to a fine from the NFL. Call this "The Anquan Boldin Rule." The Arizona Cardinals' wide receiver suffered a fracture of a facial bone that required surgery after a vicious helmet-to-helmet hit from New York Jets safety Eric Smith last season. Smith wasn't penalized, but he did draw a $50,000 fine and one-game suspension from the league.
» If a pass rusher, who is blocked into the quarterback's legs or into the ground on the way to the quarterback, continues to run or drives forcefully into the player, he'll draw a 15-yard unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty and be subject to a fine. Call this the "Tom Brady Rule." The New England Patriots' quarterback suffered a season-ending knee injury during the 2008 opener on a hit by Kansas City Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard, who claimed the contact happened by "accident" after he was blocked into Brady's leg. Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss disagreed, saying after the game the hit looked "dirty" to him.
» The "wedge," typically formed by the middle blockers on kickoff returns, might be outlawed because it has a long history of causing injuries.
Nuove regole al vaglio degli owner. Sulla prima sono d'accordo perchè si vietano i colpi alla testa dei
defenseless ricevitori (Boldin rule)
Sulla seconda ho qualche perplessità di più: un rushatore che subisce un blocco nelle vicinanze delle gambe del QB o nello spazio verso il QB che continua a cercare di andare verso il QB
forcefully si becca 15 yard di penalità (quindi prepariamoci alla sagra delle chiamate idiote degli arbitri). Come determineranno il "forcefully"... Questa è la cosiddetta Brady rule.
L'ultima sarà di notevole impatto per le squadre che ne fanno uso: togliere la possibilità di usare la wedge nei kickoff return non è così banale...
Tutto questo per la sicurezza dei giocatori, ma poi...
In addition, the committee is recommending that instant replay -- which currently covers certain fumbles -- be expanded to include all fumble plays, including the "tuck rule," whereby a quarterback is deemed to have thrown an incomplete pass rather than fumbled if his arm is moving forward.
This is in response to referee Ed Hochuli's infamous decision last season to blow the whistle after determining, at first glance, that Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler had lost the ball late in a game against the San Diego Chargers via a tuck-rule incompletion. Replays showed that Cutler actually fumbled the ball and the Chargers recovered it, which would have sealed a San Diego victory. Instead, because the whistle had blown, the Broncos retained the ball and later scored a touchdown and a winning two-point conversion.
Under the committee's recommendation, officials will not blow a whistle on such plays. "So, if there's a loose ball, you play through the recovery, and the recovery can be adjudicated on replay," the source said.
Per evitare casi alla Cutler contro i Chargers, l'arbitro non fischierà in caso di dubbio su una palla persa, così i giocatori si ammazzeranno per recuperare il pallone e poi il replay stabilirà cosa è giusto...
Direi che questo va proprio in direzione della salvaguardia della salute dei giocatori... :gazza:
