NFL Looking To Protect QBs Even More

[Giantmetfan07]

 

The NFL has gone to great lengths to protect quarterbacks, but with a rash of injuries this season to the game's most visible players, more rules could be on the way to keep passers safe.
 
"Should he always get protection from low hits or head hits, regardless of the posture he's presenting?" NFL vice president of officials Dean Blandino told the Associated Press. "Part of the conversation will be: Should that protection be expanded to all times when the quarterback has the ball in the pocket?"
 
Last season, 20 of 32 teams started the same quarterback in every game. Ten weeks into the 2013 season and that number is already down to 20.
 
"If you don't have someone who can be productive at that position, you're not going to win many games," Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon told the AP. "You need to keep your quarterback healthy, because on most teams, there's a huge drop-off from the starter to the backup. It's a watered-down position, because there's not a lot of great guys after the top 15 or so. When you get a good guy, you want to keep him healthy."
 
Several teams found their "great guy," who just so happens to be a read-option quarterback. But Blandino said before the season that read-option QBs can be hit like running backs, even if they don't have the ball.
 
"[The read-option quarterback] is still treated as a runner until he is clearly out of the play," Blandino said in early September. "The quarterback makes the pitch, he's still a runner -- he can be hit like a runner until he's clearly out of the play."
 
It's the same deal for plays designed to confuse the defense about who has the ball.
 
"The quarterback and the running back, they're both treated as runners," Blandino continued. "We don't know who has the football, we don't know who's going to take it, so both players are treated as runners. ... The basic concept is, the quarterback position is not defenseless throughout the down. It's the posture he presents that will dictate his protections."
 
Still, that doesn't mean it's open season on quarterbacks.
 
"If the quarterback is out of the pocket, he's clearly out of the play, he cannot be unnecessarily contacted," Blandino said.
 
As we pointed out at the time, it'll be interesting to see how long until these rules are changed. Key injuries to big names have a way of swaying the competition committee.

 

[RipCity32]

"You may not touch the QB."

 

[Hurricane Season]

"The defender and QB, upon meeting during a play, must come to an agreement and sign a waiver before the defender is allowed to proceed with the tackle.  If such an agreement is not met upon contact, the defender will be beheaded on primetime television at halftime during Monday Night Football."

 

[Fuhgeddaboudit]

Please dont touch me

 

[Pugz]

THATS MY QUARTER BACK

 

[Giantmetfan07]

"The defender and QB, upon meeting during a play, must come to an agreement and sign a waiver before the defender is allowed to proceed with the tackle.  If such an agreement is not met upon contact, the defender will be beheaded on primetime television at halftime during Monday Night Football."

 
well at least the MNF ratings would go up. 

 

[elcheato]

I guess I'm in the minority who has no problem with this one.
 
But then again I really have no issue with most of the rules put in place to protect QBs because they make sense.

 

[Lake Louise]

I get wanting players to be safe, but the reality is this isn't a safe sport they are playing. They are doing the best they can, but it can get to a point where it starts hurting the game, and I think this would be one of those times. It already has in some aspects, and it's not like all the QB's have been injured in vicious plays. Some of them have been similar things that they have done, day after day, play after play, and something just turned slightly the wrong way, those will never be able to be prevented entirely because freak accidents always happen. Not all of these are freak accidents, but some cases have been such.

 

[elcheato]

Here's the thing. The QB is the only position on the field who isn't expecting to get hit at all times. They aren't bracing for contact like linemen, runningbacks, fullbacks, receivers after the catch, etc.., thus any time they get hit when they aren't acting as a runner, it makes for an awkward fall and an increase in potential injury, much more likely than most positions. If you made the rules anything goes like most here are advocating, these QBs would be going down left and right (newsflash, they already have been even with these rules).

 

[Giantmetfan07]

The truth of the matter is they're going to get hurt. They've always gotten hurt, let's not fuck the game up even more by trying to protect them more. That call in the 49ers/Saints game is an excellent example of the league having gone too far to protect the QBs. 
 
The more areas of the body you eliminate,t he more other areas will get targeted. You eliminate the head? guys are going to go low to avoid a hit to the head penalty. Now apparently there's a hit to the neck penalty, so reaching for his chest can screw you over if you're not careful. 
 
Eliminate targeting the guy below the waist and more and more QBs will start to have fractured ribs. Where does it end. 

 

[Fuhgeddaboudit]

That hit was intense, but I really am not sure how close to the neck/head it was. 
 
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