May? Per se? Fuck it, let's throw in a 'perhaps' and 'woulda, coulda, shoulda'. Definitive terms be damned! If the concept of something as seemingly simple as a catch has taught us anything it's that constant doubt and a complete lack of clarity makes the disciplining of plays that happen dozens of times per game all the more fun! Rules were meant to be broken, and nothing guarantees that they will be quite like making it so that every routine tackle can arguably be interpreted as a penalty! If there's anything the NFL viewing experience lacks it's pretty yellow projectiles, and this change all-but-assures that you'll have the opportunity to look towards the top of screen to catch one in all its glory after every two yard run! Look, I get it. You don't exactly have to be on the NFL's front lines to come to the conclusion that the first priority in "protecting the shield" is avoiding a nationally televised death during the war against concussions. The Ryan Shazier injury was wayyyy too close to terminal for anyone's liking, and this rule change might as well be in direct response to it. It's quite obviously just a way of covering their own ass come the next inevitable reminder that football - even at it's most cautious - is an inherently dangerous sport that lends itself to tragedy, but even if protecting the players from themselves is just a byproduct of the damage control I appreciate that it's being taken into account. I just have one stupid question, how exactly does one tackle legally? I think I speak for all the players, coaches, and fans in suggesting an online tutorial (preferably dramatized by Dean Blandino, if he's available) that shows the proper way to take athletes who are asininely big, fast, strong, and agile to the ground without hitting them up high or ducking your head down low. By legislating tackling more strictly than the brain injuries caused by it, the preeminent tackle football league in the world has somehow redefined the word. Therefore, I think we all need a vocab lesson here. As I understand it, the preferred method of defense is now to throw your arm out in the general direction of an offensive player's ankles and hope they trip over it. Is acting as an unexpected curb to the ball carrier really the most rightful way to stop him short of first down, or am I misinterpreting an impossibly interpreted regulation? I know this decision was made to deter players from going head first into battle, but it's morbidly comical that the braintrust (<----ironic word choice alert) of a multi-billion dollar operation sat down, tried to think of ways in which they could limit the amount of lifeless bodies, and their only solution was to throw weighted laundry at them. I'm not sure I should have expected anything else from a league whose business model is made impenetrable by continually blaming their players instead of tarnishing their brand by accepting its unavoidable brutality.
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