Tuck Rule abolished, leading with helmet made illegal

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By Will Brinson | Senior Blogger
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-on-football/21918026/tuck-rule-abolished-leading-with-helmet-made-illegal" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-o ... de-illegal</a>


PHOENIX -- The Tuck Rule is dead. Despite the love shown to one of the more ridiculous rules in the NFL by the influential Robert Kraft, the Tuck Rule is no more, having been abolished by the league at the 2013 NFL owners meetings. Along with that, the owners voted to pass a rule prohibiting runners and defenders from leading with the crown of their helmets.

It was a stunningly quick voting session by the owners on Wednesday, with the meetings wrapping up by 9:30 a.m. local time in Phoenix, suggesting that all the proposals passed the vote by a significant margin. (Some reports indicate it passed 31-1.)

One of the more obvious selections for passage was a rule to fix the Thanksgiving challenge fiasco that the Lions encountered when Jim Schwartz tried to challenge a Justin Forsett touchdown and therefore negated the official's ability to review the scoring play. Instead, a challenge of a play like that will result in a 15-yard penalty with the original play being reviewed.

That was an obvious change. The leading-with-the-crown-of-your-helmet rule is a much more controversial rule alteration for the league. Running backs and defensive players who lead with the top of their helmet when attempting to make tackles will be flagged 15 yards. Should both players be flagged, the penalties will offset and the teams will replay the down.

"It is a foul if a runner or tackler initiates forcible contact by delivering a blow with the top/crown of his helmet against an opponent when both players are clearly outside the tackle box (an area extending from tackle to tackle and from three yards beyond the line of scrimmage to the offensive team's end line)," the new rule, Rule 12, Section 2, Article 8, reads. "Incidental contact by the helmet of a runner or tackler against an opponent shall not be a foul."

It'll be interesting to see whether or not officials can accurately interpret and apply the rule during the coming season. At the very least, we know that a good number of running backs around the NFL, both past and present, aren't happy about it.

 

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Jeff Fisher weighs in on rule changes

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[tweet]314427366590017536[/tweet]

 

[Rabid Ram]

Tuck rule should have been gone long ago

 

[Ram Quixote]

Tuck rule should have been gone long ago

Why do you think Kraft had been championing the rule? If it had been stricken immediately after the play against the Raiders, the legitimacy of the Patriots even being in the AFC championship game would have been questioned.

 

[UnknownREknown]

The tuck rule and challenge rule were obvious but I hope there isn't too much of a gameplay change for runners and tacklers with the crown rule in effect.

 

[Memento]

[tweet]314427366590017536[/tweet]

Totally agree with Pead. These owners keep trying to put lipstick on a pig, and I'm getting a bit tired of it. This is a violent sport, and it always will be, no matter what rule changes they make. Players are going to be hurt; the most you can do is take care of them after their careers are over. Of course, the league will never do that...

 

[RamsNation]

This rule has crossed a line if you ask me,I understand all the other new rules based on player safety.The game must change with the athletes i get that,these days they are bigger faster and stronger than ever on average.But this rule seems a but over the top,putting that much more pressure on refs to make judgement calls.If they call this to the tee we can expect alot of runs called back and that's just ruining football.This sport is supposed to be violent that's the nature,they are turning it into touch football [WEARY FACE].

 

[Ramhusker]

Stupid is all I can say about this crown of the helmet bull crap.

 

[Warner4Prez]

I read PFT's write-up about it and some of Fisher's quotes and it doesn't seem all that bad. A bit sky-is-falling-esque by some reactions. Apparently NFL reviewed game footage from two weeks of football and found that penalties would have been called 11 times (or something to that effect). Sure it's a shit deal, but if it's something that's going to be enforced on open field runs, I can abide.

 

[MTRamsFan]

Tuck rule should have been gone long ago

Why do you think Kraft had been championing the rule? If it had been stricken immediately after the play against the Raiders, the legitimacy of the Patriots even being in the AFC championship game would have been questioned.

Without the "No Tuck" rule, the Belicheaters would have lost the AFC championship game and wouldn't have then "secretly" videotaped the RAMS practice prior to SB XXXVI, and the RAMS would have won their second SB.

 

[jap]

Tuck rule should have been gone long ago

Why do you think Kraft had been championing the rule? If it had been stricken immediately after the play against the Raiders, the legitimacy of the Patriots even being in the AFC championship game would have been questioned.

It has been, still is, and always will be questioned.

 

[BatteringRambo]

[tweet]314427366590017536[/tweet]

Totally agree with Pead. These owners keep trying to put lipstick on a pig :sly: and I'm getting a bit tired of it. This is a violent sport, and it always will be, no matter what rule changes they make. Players are going to be hurt; the most you can do is take care of them after their careers are over. Of course, the league will never do that...

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Ram Quixote]

Tuck rule should have been gone long ago

Why do you think Kraft had been championing the rule? If it had been stricken immediately after the play against the Raiders, the legitimacy of the Patriots even being in the AFC championship game would have been questioned.

It has been, still is, and always will be questioned.

Oh, of course. But those who do the questioning (Ram, Raider and Steeler fans) have been basically ignored. If the Tuck rule had been dropped the following season, the mainstream media would have been asking pointed questions about the validity of the call, and passing around words like tainted.

Kraft's agenda was to keep it on the books long enough for people to shrug when it went away, like most fans are now.

 

[iced]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlv6BrrxD_4[/youtube]

 

[nighttrain]

my thots on the crown rule. I believe Coach Fisher was on the rules committee this past off season, correct me if i'm wrong, but even if he wasn't this info was sure to be leaked. It has the greatest effect on power backs such as SJ, could this be the reason, or one of them, why SJ was allowed to walk?

Seems logical to me, power running backs are going to take the hardest hits in regards to penalties, whereas finesse RB like Pead and Richardson should have less trouble with the new rule..Just makes me think basing your offense on a power back type offense is going to rapidly be a thing of the past.. Hence those that really believe that the Jake Long signing signify's that Fisher is is going to run first and pass second are in for a shock. With this rule change it will increase the wide open offense my a significant amount leaving players like Tavon Austin increasingly valuable, and guys like Lacy dropping in the draft. Just some idle thots this morning.
train

 

[Thordaddy]

my thots on the crown rule. I believe Coach Fisher was on the rules committee this past off season, correct me if i'm wrong, but even if he wasn't this info was sure to be leaked. It has the greatest effect on power backs such as SJ, could this be the reason, or one of them, why SJ was allowed to walk?

Seems logical to me, power running backs are going to take the hardest hits in regards to penalties, whereas finesse RB like Pead and Richardson should have less trouble with the new rule..Just makes me think basing your offense on a power back type offense is going to rapidly be a thing of the past.. Hence those that really believe that the Jake Long signing signify's that Fisher is is going to run first and pass second are in for a shock. With this rule change it will increase the wide open offense my a significant amount leaving players like Tavon Austin increasingly valuable, and guys like Lacy dropping in the draft. Just some idle thots this morning.
train

I see this just the opposite IMO this rule change give the guy who can throw a forearm and stand a LB or DB up (like SJ) more valuable, the smaller men NEED the head as a weapon more.

As far as my take on the rule, I expected it would pass and I expect more rules that are going to at least make it appear that the NFL is doing all it can to minimize injuries.
In the end if they don't pass a rule and a player gets a career ending or life threatening injury and the league has voted a safety measure that would prevent it down, LAWSUIT.
Where this ends ardunno, but insulating itself from lawsuits is the WHOLE reason they are doing this.

 

[nighttrain]

my thots on the crown rule. I believe Coach Fisher was on the rules committee this past off season, correct me if i'm wrong, but even if he wasn't this info was sure to be leaked. It has the greatest effect on power backs such as SJ, could this be the reason, or one of them, why SJ was allowed to walk?

Seems logical to me, power running backs are going to take the hardest hits in regards to penalties, whereas finesse RB like Pead and Richardson should have less trouble with the new rule..Just makes me think basing your offense on a power back type offense is going to rapidly be a thing of the past.. Hence those that really believe that the Jake Long signing signify's that Fisher is is going to run first and pass second are in for a shock. With this rule change it will increase the wide open offense my a significant amount leaving players like Tavon Austin increasingly valuable, and guys like Lacy dropping in the draft. Just some idle thots this morning.
train

I see this just the opposite IMO this rule change give the guy who can throw a forearm and stand a LB or DB up (like SJ) more valuable, the smaller men NEED the head as a weapon more.

As far as my take on the rule, I expected it would pass and I expect more rules that are going to at least make it appear that the NFL is doing all it can to minimize injuries.
In the end if they don't pass a rule and a player gets a career ending or life threatening injury and the league has voted a safety measure that would prevent it down, LAWSUIT.
Where this ends ardunno, but insulating itself from lawsuits is the WHOLE reason they are doing this.

Quick able to cut backs are hard to tackle..
train