And that is the root cause of all the concussions and career ending injuries we see in the NFL.
Would we even watch a less barbaric form of the game?
Would some sort of two hand/flag football even be watchable?
I’m not sure the NFL is all in on player safety. It seems like they are making up rules on the fly more to reduce future liability than anything else.
I’m sure this idea of taking the tackle out of football has been discussed by the owners and maybe they are doing just that but in a long, drawn out process that could take years. They know that if they outright changed the game so drastically it wouldn’t fly by the consumers of the game.
I’m guessing in about ten years we will have the “tackle” less football I’m talking about.
What a shame it would be to prematurely lose such a superhuman talent such as a Saquon or fill in the blank if we could only swallow a change to a basic tenet of the game we love.
I don’t post much because I’m not too fond of the crap a lot of posters receive here but I’m an old guy with thick skin so I’ll post this and duck lol
Guys won't hit head first with just their bare heads or some plastic shell that would crack like an eggshell when hit directly.
A tackle is meant to bring down the opponent. A hit is meant to deliver punishment.
100% this. They really don't care.
BW's point about 'tackling' versus 'hitting' is something I agree with, as well.
And the other advantage to tackling instead of hitting is that it works a whole lot better at stopping the offensive player.
Tatum - Stingley
Football was is and will remain a very violent sport. The players are know heavier, stronger and faster. They fly like bullets fearlessly. And the NFL keeps attempting to improve the equipment to enable the players to behave more irresponsibly.
Can you imagine how good Barkley would be at competitive backyard football.....OMG
slowing down the game slightly
2) Pillow-top helmets to provide more cushion on head blows
Rugby has so much more scrum, guys are much less often running for long enough to get to full speed with the tackler also running at full speed...
Everyone is just bigger, faster and stronger. Look at 60's and 70's physiques to today. I wonder what those guys squatted, cleaned etc. It's just physics when people collide. Are "enhancements" being used?
I think these modern offenses contribute as well with so much more short passing and volume. More high impact collisions.
At some point, I guess there will be a waiver to play and the other thing I can see is a limit to documented concussions before having to give up playing.
The problem is that the league didn't discourage that behavior for many years, so a whole generation of kids grew up feeling safe under equipment and felt OK launching themselves headfirst with violent force to hit an opponent.
It isn't necessary to make a tackle, but there league is filled with players who would rather hit with the shoulder or head than wrap up a ball carrier.
until the league makes the punishment for tackling this way a deterrent, it will continue.
A tackle is meant to bring down the opponent. A hit is meant to deliver punishment.
This is exactly what I was thinking the other day when FMiC brought up the issue of safety. I believe I would be OK with the league removing the "hit" from the league and allowing tackling only. Don't know how they'd police, because in some cases there are nuances that would need to be interpreted. I hate when a guy gets jacked over the middle and the announcer says something like "it was a clean hit though." A clean hit can still cause a concussion when you're dealing with instantaneous changes in direction and velocity.
You can jar the ball loose without launching yourself like a missile. Take better angles. Use a shoulder to hit the arms. Wrap up the receiver as soon as he touches the ball.
Tech will advance to keep the small repeated blows from having the effects on the brain. Science will advance to analyze if certain people are more susceptible to developing the proteins that seems to be at the root of CTE.
That's all assuming the NFL gets out of the way and is wise enough to not let today destroy tomorrow.
Ha! No cookies for you....