Tbh they can't change the way those rules are, so you either have situations where a guy can just completely hold a guy because the penalty is just 5 yards and meaningless, yet on the other hand get some ticky tack call that goes from 3rd and long to first and goal.

They need to change the reffing and get them to allow a bit more leeway for DB's to avoid this marginal gamechanging BS.

Wouldn't mind seeing PI calls being 15 and an auto first rather than spot of the foul. Seems way too many teams just launching it down field and getting an easy 50 yards. Also doesn't exactly give defenders a free shot. And tbh if a defender makes the judgment call in a split second to take him out then risk the TD then fair enough.
I suppose the issue would be end of game situations but I suppose you could say unless in the final 2 mins.

And yeah hitting the QB rules are bollocks, and get rid of taunting penalties and the excessive celebration pens. Because they are ridiculously stupid.

+1000 the 'taunting' penalty last night against CIN was silly. It's sad when every time a team celebrates after a play you hold your breath waiting for a flag.

Yeah, that rule is totally asinine. I understand why it was put in, but the way it was enforced in that game (correctly) is totally against the spirit of the rule. Anyone should be allowed to recover a fumble. If the fear is that the offensive team could fumblerooski it, then just say they can't advance it past the LOS if it was fumbled behind it and they can't advance it period if it was fumbled ahead of it. If the fumble is beyond the LOS, just rule that it is placed back at the spot of the fumble if recovered by any other offensive player other than the one who fumbled (or even including that player).

Seems to me the easy fix is that if the ball is fumbled backwards it can be advanced by anyone, but if it's fumbled forwards it can only be advanced by the fumbler.

Aren't helmets responsible for many of the concussions?

I agree. I suppose if there was still a fear of a team purposely fumbling, even backwards, the rule could still just say it can't be advanced, just recovered. But yeah, just make it simple, like you said.

This should apply to the defensive team also. They get the ball where they first touched it.

Only forward fumbles should be penalized like that. If at all. Fumble plays with a ball that's loose for more than ~3 seconds are the most exciting plays in football.

Not directly. Concussions are caused by the brain moving around inside the skull. Helmets help to reduce this movement by absorbing some of the impact of a blow, although they don't do a good job of it.

The argument for eliminating helmets as it is normally presented is that modern helmets give players a sense of invincibility and encourage players to "use their helmets as a weapon." This in turn increases collisions involving the head and hence increases head injuries.

This argument ignores history and has some common sense flaws. Back in the day football was played without helmets. Dozens of people died, mostly due to skull fractures. This was long before 300 pound players and full time professionals. The helmet was introduced to prevent injury and death from skull fractures, a task at which it has been succesful.

Moreover, even if we concede that eliminating helmets will make players less likely to use their head as a weapon, the randomness of the game would inevitably lead to accidental blows to the head, and it is certain that some of these blows will cause skull fractures, and if you have enough skull fractures you will eventually have death.

Another flaw is that if we are not wearing helmets it may make me less likely to hit you with my head but it gives me no reason to not hit you in your head with another part of my body (my shoulder for example).

If you want to find examples just youtube guys getting blown up on slant routes. Wes Welker & Austin Collie immediately come to mind as guys who would probably be dead if it wasn't for helmets.

Sorry can't provide links I'm on phone.

Eliminate all rules regarding advancement of fumbles. If a team wants to try a screwball play involving an intentional "fumble", fine and dandy. Weird stuff enhances the game.

I can get behind this. It's like the rules they put in to make onside kicks harder (min 4 guys on each side of the kicker, etc.). It's already an <20% proposition, what's the point?

Hey, the NHL is all about safety. The care about their players — that's why they're paying about a billion dollars to the ones who've been brain damaged. And who will be.

And encourage bare fisted fighting!

Is there a reason they can't make the exterior of the helmet out of a softer material? At least to make helmet to helmet collisions less violent.

Related, all cars should be made out of Nerf.

And why isn't the entire plane made out of the black box?

I think there was a prototype of a helmet like this, but supposedly the idea was rejected literally because the game wouldn't "sound right"--after the snap, instead of the familiar crunch of lineman's helmets crashing together, there'd just be a big "foomp". Not sure about the truth of this, though, it's possible the helmets were scrapped simply because they weren't proven to be any more effective.

Aesthetics bro' nerf doesn't look as good

This exact discussion happened like 10 months ago somewhere

The Bills DB got dinged when he hit the back of his head on the turf. Should they play on a nerf field?

Come to think of it, I like that idea. They could go the whole nine yards and play with nerf helmets, shoulder pads and, of course, nerf balls. Call it the Nerf Football League.

One word: trampolines.

They could put NFL helmets and shoulder pads on hockey players real easy. The reason they don't is the players will feel invulnerable and go flying into others head first and use their helmets/pads as weapons. Playing football with no helmets or leather helmets is a terrible idea. I think the solution is going to NHL style shoulder pads and helmets. Decent protection but not affective as weapons.

In the NFL that's irrelevant. If Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson run around the end for 8 yards and run OB there is a totally different standard for contact then if it's a RB or WR running for 8 yards and going OB. The call on contact going OB is based soley on the position the runner is playing.

remove helmets and hard plastic from NFL... make it a mans game ..... go to one ref... PAY them by the victory... no subs ....

Lolwat

Basketball. Don't give teams additional timeouts if the game goes to OT. If they ran out, tough ****

I'd rather see teams only get 1 to in the last 2 mins. It's ridiculous now how the final 2 mins takes 20 min or more.