The NFL’s owners on Monday ratified a proposal by the league’s competition committee to prohibit hip-drop tackles. Such tackles now will be subject to 15-yard penalties during games and potential fines afterward.
The NFL is enacting the ban over the objection of the NFL Players Association. League leaders said they respected the players’ opinion on the matter but they could not, they said, ignore an injury rate for the technique that is 20 to 25 times higher than that for standard tackles. Members of the NFL’s health and safety staff said they studied 20,000 tackles over recent seasons to make that determination.
The new rule defines a hip-drop tackle as occurring when a tackler grabs a ballcarrier, swivels and leaves the ground, then falls on the back of the ballcarrier’s lower leg. The technique resulted in high-profile injuries last season to Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, among others.
The NFL is enacting the ban over the objection of the NFL Players Association. League leaders said they respected the players’ opinion on the matter but they could not, they said, ignore an injury rate for the technique that is 20 to 25 times higher than that for standard tackles. Members of the NFL’s health and safety staff said they studied 20,000 tackles over recent seasons to make that determination.
The new rule defines a hip-drop tackle as occurring when a tackler grabs a ballcarrier, swivels and leaves the ground, then falls on the back of the ballcarrier’s lower leg. The technique resulted in high-profile injuries last season to Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, among others.
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