What rule or penalty would you like gone?

[Godzilla_89]

Pass interference should only be a 15 yard penalty and an automatic first down. It's ridiculous that it is a spot foul with the way the referees call games. The spot foul pass interference might have made sense in the early days of the NFL when the league was predominately a running league, but now that the game has changed to a throwing league, it is way too severe a penalty.

Totally agree on this one. Part of the game is becoming throwing shots downfield with the only negatives being an incompletion or rare interception while offenses have all the benefits of PI and holding calls.

[Awsi Dooger]

This one is simple to me. First, there is a minor one... hitting a quarterback, even slightly in the head, with your hand should not be a penalty. There are a few that are violent, but for the most part its pretty obvious that the player who is getting hurt is the the defensive players hand and not the quarterbacks head. When hand meets helmet....helmet wins.

More importantly, I believe the rules prohibiting defensive players from impeding wide receivers and tight ends after five yards of contact with even minimal contact is doing a true disservice to the illusion of improving player safety. Lets be real, the league is not interested in improving player safety, they are interested in asset protection. There is a difference. The NFL is driven by scoring points. Across the board, regardless of sport, if you increase scoring... you increase the interest of non-die hard fans, and these additional casual fans are the driving force for increasing the popularity of the game.

When the NFL decided that it was going to truly allow offense to dominate through the air, while simultaneously attempting to increase player safety, they hit a major cross roads. By allowing receivers to run freely through the defensive backfield, the game changed forever in favor of offense. However, what they didnt account for was what happened as a result of all this free movement. By giving these ultra gifted athletes a 'free release', all of the sudden they are running at full stride almost at will around the field. The defensive players are also roaming freely with limited contact to slow them down. What happens when two all world athletes are running at full speed and collide?....destruction.

The allowance of the old rules to impede offensive players, allowed them to slow them down. I know it sounds obvious, but that changes everything. Two players hitting each other at 70% of their respective optimum speeds (totally arbitrary number) makes an unbelievable difference compared to each of them running full speed.

The lightbulb moment for me about this was a few years ago (shortly after the rule changes i believe) was when two "little" players by NFL standards, Desean Jackson and Dunta Robinson collided for one of the most violent hits in recent memory. Dunta was levied a fine, which I believe was totally unwarranted. Dunta absolutely lowers his head, but if you notice, all the contact comes from his shoulder into Desean's chest... a legal hit. The issue is that desean was a "defenseless receiver". So the question truly becomes, why is desean, and other receivers, defenseless? The answer is because the rules have been tinkered to allow these situations to become more and more prevalent. You aren't allowed to touch a receiver, everyone is freely running at high speeds, the reaction times now went from being incredibly small windowed to now nearly instantaneous.

I will admit I am a more traditionalist in the sense that I believe football was designed as a barbaric and brutal game. I do not believe there is any way to make football "safe", much like there is no way to make boxing safe. But just like boxers are two consenting adults, the players ,outside of some of the quarterbacks, are against these protection rules. It is taking away from the spirit of the game, and they acknowledge that this is what they signed up to do. Desean Jackson after the crushing hit when asked about the hit said somemthing along the lines of, this is football, I signed up to be a football player, don't take the hitting out.

The NFL's own ambition for points is also one of the contributing factors to hellacious hits and concussions being sustained on a nearly gamely basis. Combine that with the fact that players are truly as big, fast, and strong as ever.... and you have a formula for frustrated players, frustrated fans, seriously injured players, but more points... and in the end thats all the NFL is concerned with.

There are numerous impressive posts in this thread but this one is one of the best I've ever seen. I was frankly shocked that the point I was going to make had already been detailed so beautifully, far beyond what I would have managed.

I grew up with rules allowing contact in the secondary before the ball was released. That was glorious to witness, tactical battles everywhere. You had skilled hand checkers and receivers adept at avoiding the hand check. It indeed slowed the game down in the secondary, with defender and receiver staying in close contact with each other. There were more pure fly patterns down the sideline in those days but not the ridiculous abuse of underneath crossing patterns. Somebody was going to get a hand or shoulder on you and knock you off stride.

When the league was determined to open up the game during the run oriented '70s they got rid of chopping receivers at the line of scrimmage, via the so-called Isaac Curtis Rule, and then instituted the 5 yard zone. As damanref10 described so well, they had no clue how it would evolve. The current interpretation of the rules for safety purposes would work fine if they simply got rid of the 5 yard rule and reverted to liberal hand checking before the release of the ball. Of course, Goodell and the NFL will never risk that, petrified at the prospect of a less pass oriented, lower scoring league. It's indeed asset protection, disguised as player safety. My aunt is a classic example. She loves matching touchdowns. When I told her the Super Bowl might be low scoring and physical she literally got a stunned depressed look on her face and said she might do something else that day.

Otherwise:

* The intentional grounding rule is disgraceful. Who cares if the ball made it back to the line of scrimmage? A quarterback has to be a moron to take a sack outside the tackle box. I feel bad for younger fans who grow up with these contrived rules, with no background toward how it used to be. Same for the clock stopping at arbitrary points, as someone else mentioned. It should stop when the play is out of bounds, period.

* Restore the 15 minute halftime

* Tuck rule, obviously

* Go back to sudden death overtime. Kicking off from the 40 is perfect to eliminate the advantage to the receiving team.

* Clock should never stop after a sack

* Clock should not run after a penalty. Too often that simply aids the team with the lead. Frankly, I'm amazed more teams don't abuse it. The defense is desperate to get the ball back and the offense false starts with the clock running. Instead of the clock freezing at that point until the next snap, there goes the countdown again, another 25 seconds. It's like eliminating a time out from the opposition.

* Ball placement needs to be more precise, even if it requires electronic aid. In recent years the referees go out of their way to favor the offense in spotting the ball. One of the most dramatic changes in the 40+ years I've been a fan is the reduction of first down measurements. They used to drag the chains out there all the time, often on 2 or 3 consecutive plays, regardless of situation. Now you almost never see a measurement. It's hardly a coincidence. The referees know where the first down marker is and when it's tight they put it just far enough upfield and quickly signal first down and for the chain gang to move. Nobody is going to convince me it happened that way by chance. I know probability and I darn sure remember the way the game was officiated decades ago. These days the league wants the game to move along so they reduce delays like first down measurements. Referees are obviously told to avoid them unless absolutely necessary. Hence, it's another first down.......!

* Along the same lines, offside should be called when it happens, even if it slows down the game. The referees seldom call offside on kickoffs even though, like holding, it could be flagged on virtually every one. They only whistle the blatant examples. Same with plays from scrimmage. More and more the helmet of the defender is across the line, even if slightly, but they refuse to call it. If you're flagged on one play there's no chance they'll call it the next play, even if it's still not completely fixed. Same holds true for offensive tackles who are more than a yard back from the formation, and offenses that don't set for a full count before the snap of the ball.

* There should be more leeway in catches low to the ground. I can have full control of the ball and it happens to tickle the ground. So what? In super slow motion it's always going to look like the ball moved. I'm absolutely livid when they call those plays incomplete, particularly when it's reversed to incomplete, even though generally I despise the passing game. Referees are at their absolute worst when it comes to evaluating those plays. Same for fans and announcers. There's a desperation to scream the ball moved and therefore incomplete. Meanwhile, imagine yourself holding a diamond, even the most expensive ones in the world. I can hold them in both hands and drag them along the ground, fully in control. No harm, no concern. It's obviously in my possession. But if it's a football we've got to yell incomplete.

[roy_miami]

* Ball placement needs to be more precise, even if it requires electronic aid. In recent years the referees go out of their way to favor the offense in spotting the ball. One of the most dramatic changes in the 40+ years I've been a fan is the reduction of first down measurements. They used to drag the chains out there all the time, often on 2 or 3 consecutive plays, regardless of situation. Now you almost never see a measurement. It's hardly a coincidence. The referees know where the first down marker is and when it's tight they put it just far enough upfield and quickly signal first down and for the chain gang to move. Nobody is going to convince me it happened that way by chance. I know probability and I darn sure remember the way the game was officiated decades ago. These days the league wants the game to move along so they reduce delays like first down measurements. Referees are obviously told to avoid them unless absolutely necessary. Hence, it's another first down.......!

.

I think you're right about this and its especially noticeable if the first down line is right on the 30 yard line or whatever. I don't have a big problem with it however, I think they should take it a bit further and always spot the ball on a yard line or half yard line to speed up play, get rid of the chains altogether and just spot the ball at the last line crossed. Either that or use computer chips for precise measurements like you suggested.

[South_Beach]

Roughing the Passer
Roughing the Kicker
Defender leaving his feet to sack the QB

[Fin-O]

...........?

I was joking, and just needed my 10th post...
To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

[allsilverdreams]

it appears we are all in favor of some changes and would like to see them made.like many have said the league wants scoring.if they keep to this thinking they should rid them self of many of the rules they have put into this new game of football.are we over looking the fact that perhaps the NFL does not want major law suits due to injuries or other health issues that come with the game.if so it is what it is and dont expect change.
they should however look into the stupid changes such as PI ,TUCK RULE,CLOCK MANAGMENT,A CATCH,THE FOOTBALL MOTION WHEN IT OMES TO FUMBLES and the list can go on.

[CalDolFan10x14]

Definitely agree with the Defensive Pass Interference rule. The only way it should be a spot foul is between 5-15 yards. After that it's a 15 yard penalty and an automatic first down. If it's a REALLY long pass (say over 50 yards) maybe you can add another 5, but these 40-60 yard penalties are ridiculous. The "Patriot" Tuck Rule can go as well. Finally, as Awsi mentioned, get the spot of the ball right...even if you have to put a small chip in the ball. There's nothing as annoying as them signalling a first down right away without a measurement even on the closest of calls.

[roy_miami]

What they could do is just combine the defensive holding, illegal contact and pass interference into one rule which results in a 10 yard penalty and automatic first down.

[MP-Omnis]

I think they should split the difference between where the kickoff used to be and where it is now.

[Etuoo33]

Offensive Holding???? I never see that called when the Phins are on D