Rule Changes Are Ruining the NFL: An Editorial

Last night, the Ravens and Jaguars locked up in a game that made you unsure if the defenses were that good, or the offenses were that bad. Jacksonville fumbled three times, once inside the 1 yard line and the Ravens didn't get a first down until nearly 5 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter. What stood out to me was not the action by the players, but the actions of the referees.

I took the following information from the ESPN.com staff as the discussion was going on there as well. This is according to the NFL Rule Book.

Rule 12, Section 2, Article 8 (Unnecessary roughness) in the NFL rulebook
(f) If a player uses any part of his helmet (including the top/crown and forehead/”hairline” parts) or facemask to butt, spear, or ram an opponent violently or unnecessarily. Although such violent or unnecessary use of the helmet and facemask is impermissible against any opponent, game officials will give special attention in administering this rule to protecting those players who are in virtually defenseless postures, including but not limited to:

(1) Forcibly hitting the defenseless player’s head, neck, or face with the helmet or facemask, regardless of whether the defensive player also uses his arms to tackle the defenseless player by encircling or grasping him; or

(2) Lowering the head and violently or unnecessarily making forcible contact with the “hairline” or forehead part of the helmet against any part of the defenseless player’s body.

Now, let's take a look at the two plays in question and their direct effect on the game as it was. With 12:40 remaining in the 3rd quarter, Jacksonville faced a 3rd and long play. Blaine Gabbert dropped back to throw and Deji Karim got his hands on the ball. It squirted through for what would have been an incompletion and then was punished by Baltimore safety Bernard Pollard. Here's the video of the hit.

By my estimation, that is a clean, legal hit. The only reason Pollard lowered his helmet was to avoid contact with Karim's. He squares him up wraps his arms around him and takes him to the ground. Did he make contact to the receiver's head or neck forcibly? There is a little contact but it's little more than the face mask brushing the top of Pollard's helmet as he comes in to make the play. So in light of the rules, by the book this play should not have been called unnecessary roughness. After this play, the Jaguars were given a first down and new life as they went down to kick a field goal to go up by 9.

It's a play that looms large because let's say for the sake of argument, the rest of the game goes unchanged. The Ravens score a touchdown to make the score 9-7 with just over 2 minutes remaining. Now, without that penalty, the Jaguars do not get their third field goal of the game at that point. Remember that we're under the assumption the rest of the game has the same result. If the Jaguars do not get that field goal, the Ravens take the lead with 2 minutes remaining at 7-6 and in that instance would not need to attempt an onside kick and make Jacksonville drive the length of the field to try and win it with either a touch down of field goal. That is a game changing call and one that directly affected the outcome of last nights game.

Later in the game, the Ravens were on their only scoring drive of the night, late in the fourth quarter. On a 1st and 10, Joe Flacco threw the ball deep to Torrey Smith who was leveled on the play and knocked out of bounds. Smith held onto the ball but was ruled out before he came down to the ground. Here is the video from that play. Scroll to 3:36 on the video, I couldn't figure out how to link it at a specific time.

Again, the receiver goes up to catch the ball and is leveled by the defender. Well, where's the flag? If Karim was defenseless, why wasn't Smith? Was it because he caught the ball? Look at it from the point of view from the defender. The player in front of you gets his hands on the ball and you are running toward him at full speed and then you make a hit. It's a bang bang play in both cases and in my opinion both plays are clean, hard hits. In my opinion, both plays either need to be flagged or not flagged but they should be treated fairly. Not make it a guessing game for defenders. What's frustrating about the unnecessary roughness call is the last part of the rule. Again, thanks to the ESPN.com team who illustrated the rule on their website this morning:

"If in doubt about a roughness call or potentially dangerous tactics, the covering official(s) should always call unnecessary roughness."

So according to the last statement, if a referee doesn't know if the play was an illegal hit, it should be treated as an illegal hit. I don't like that. These players have been trained for years that you hit the guy with the ball as hard as you can to make him drop the ball. That helps your team. Let's say Pollard pulls up and doesn't lay a hit on Karim and he holds onto the ball. He stops for fear of drawing a penalty and Karim takes it up the middle of the field for a big gain. You're damned if you do, damned if you don't. I don't like that a referee's unsureness can change a game so drastically.

The other rule which is ruining the NFL is moving the kick off to the 35 yard line. In the NFL, kickers were already getting touch backs on a regular basis. Now, it's a surprise if it's not kicked out of the back of the end zone, or the returner takes a knee. It's making the kick off a pointless endeavor. If the NFL is truly trying to put out the best possible product while prolonging players' well being, just start every drive after a score at the 20. Acting as though the kick off is still the same as it was is a sham. It's a wasted play and an insult to fans watching on TV and at the stadium.

I understand that these rules are in the best interest and the safety of the players. I get that. However, it seems that the NFL is getting too gun shy with these games and is getting to the point of alienating it's fan base. People go to games to see big plays, big guys and big hits. No one wants to see a concussion, but at the same time people want to see these players playing to their full potential. One solution I've heard and it makes sense to me is to take away the helmets all together. Maybe guys won't throw their head around like wild men if their head isn't protected and the superman complex is gone.

Lions Over Bears, Remain Undefeated

Calvin Johnson fends off Brandon Meriweather on his way to the end zone.
(AP Photo/Rick Osentoski)

The Detroit Lions are 5-0. If that sounds foreign, don't feel bad. It's the first time that Detroit has started a season 5-0 since 1956. It was only a 12 game season in those days and the Lions ended up 9-3 on the year. What was interesting about that team, as with this one is the meteoric rise going from worst to first. Something this same Lions team looks to do this year in the NFC North.

Amid the hoopla surrounding the upstart Lions, they had the home field in the Monday night affair with division rival Chicago. After a scoreless fourth quarter, the Lions found pay dirt as Matthew Stafford connected with Calvin Johnson for a 73 yard touch down pass and catch. After making the catch, Johnson fought off Safety Brandon Meriweather and trotted into the end zone. Johnson had a big night, with a total of 5 catches and 130 yards, but really set the tone with his scoring catch.

Jay Cutler started off accurately in the first half, completing 11 of his first 14 passes including a 9 yard hook up to Kellen Davis for the Bears only touch down of the night. It was good enough for Chicago to take the lead into the break at 10-7. From that point on, it was all about the Lions' defense. They continually put pressure on Cutler, sacking him 3 times and knocking him down 6 more. That pressure forced Chicago into costly penalties with 9 false starts stunting the offense that needed all the help it could get.

Much of that help came in the form of Matt Forte, who continues to be a force on the offensive side of the ball. Coming into this week, Forte was the 3rd in the NFL in yards gained from scrimmage since he came into the league in 2008 and he continues to impress. Forte, as it stands seems to be the only true viable threat on the Bears' offense and last night he accounted for 116 yards on the ground and added 4 receptions for 35 yards. Forte has been a stalwart since he put on a Bears helmet and he is showing his talents in a contract year that could net him a good paycheck the next time around, as he seems to be the only moving part in the Chicago offense.

 After the Lions forced a three and out, the offense went on a methodical 7 play drive, complete with 2 3rd down conversions and capped by an 18 yard pass to Brandon Pettigrew to put the Lions back in front. When the Bears got the ball back they started moving the ball up field but the drive stalled near mid field and Chicago was forced to punt. Stefan Logan was forced to fair catch the punt and Detroit was backed up, deep in their own territory on the 12 yard line.

This was no problem for Jahvid Best as he sprung loose after some solid blocks to open the hole and took the first play from scrimmage for 88 of his 163 yards and a score that would put the game out of reach. After Best's run it put Detroit ahead 21-10. It would end up being the last touch down scored as both sides managed a field goal in the final frame to make it 24-13. After the game, Best was asked about the turn around from a team that went 0-16 only three years ago to a squad who is contending for the NFC North crown. He stated, "Some of our guys were on the team, so they know what the city's been through. They know what this team's been through. I can definitely feel the sense of how hungry the city is."

Hopefully for Detroit they continue to feed off their city's hunger and show some themselves as their match up with suddenly explosive San Francisco looms large next week. "We'll start on San Fran in about an hour and a half," Coach Jim Schwartz stated, not satisfied with a 5-0 start. At least they get the 49ers at home next week while the Bears travel back to Chicago to face other division foe, the Minnesota Vikings.

Romo Overcomes Mistakes, Redskins

Anthony Spencer forces the game clinching fumble from quarterback Rex Grossman
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) 

De'Angelo Hall opened up the talking this past week saying that he hoped "to put my helmet on whatever's hurt." Instead it was where he put his hand that ultimately rang the death knell for the Redskins last night as Dallas won 18-16. With time winding down in the fourth quarter, an errant snap forced Romo out of the pocket and found Dez Bryant on the corner route for a 30 yard gain. Hall then compounded the play, with a 15 yard face mask penalty that put Dallas in position to kick and make the go ahead field goal. After the game; Hall commented, "I told the ref after that call, that might have been his worst call of the game," Hall said. "He's going to get demerit points for that call. Because that wasn't no facemask."

The Cowboys fumbled the ball 6 times last night, half of them coming from second year center, Phil Costa who either would send errant or mistimed shotgun snaps to Tony Romo. However, due to a marvelous stroke of luck each bad snap was recovered by Romo and twice threw the ball for positive yards on the play. Romo's frustration was apparent throughout the night, not only at Costa but at his wide receiving corp, namely Kevin Ogletree who misread routes and made poor decisions, putting pressure on the injured quarter back.

The visitors had their own problems with the snap as on a field goal attempt, punter Sav Rocca mishandled a snap on a field goal which could have meant the difference in the game. Instead, Graham Gano had to double clutch and had his attempt blocked by Gerald Sensabaugh and recovered by the Cowboys.
In their final drive, Tony Romo went 3 of 4 for 57 yards, including the long pass to Bryant to make the final kick a possibility. Despite getting no touchdowns on 3 attempts in the redzone, including a first and goal from the 2, Dallas did just enough to beat their hated rivals, on the leg of rookie kicker Dan Bailey who went 6 of 6 including a pair of kicks from 41 yards out.

The much maligned Dallas defense from last season had a shot at redemption and cashed in as Anthony Spencer chased down a scrambling Rex Grossman and knocked the ball loose. The Cowboys defense covered it up and Romo took a knee with 30 seconds remaining to make the score official.

One of the main stories of the night was Tony Romo's broken ribs. When asked after the game how he felt the quarter back said, "It feels good right now because we won. I'll be alright." At one point, the Washington defense was getting to Romo enough that he had to go in and get a second pain killer shot to the area.

The Cowboys improve to 2-1 to form a three way tie atop the NFC East with the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins. More importantly, to owner Jerry Jones it was the first home opener the Cowboys have won since Jones opened the stadium three years ago. Next week the Cowboys face an upstart Detroit team who is undefeated back in Dallas while Washington goes on the road to face the St. Louis Rams.