In March 2018 NFL owners voted to approve Article 8 of the rulebook, better known as the helmet contact rule, an effort aimed at taking head-first collisions out of the game. It’s an attempt to make the game safer, but refs and teams still struggling to understand the new rule, it’s resulted in some controversy and lots and lots of confusion.
During the very first preseason game of the year, between the Bears and Ravens, refs called two penalties on players for violating the new rule. Two weeks into the exhibition season, the rule has become a persistent bother in every. single. game.
Through two full weeks of the preseason, as well as the Hall of Fame game, there have been 51 penalties because of the helmet rule, an average of 1.5 per game, mostly called against the defense (43).
With each week bringing more confusion, the NFL will convene a conference call with the league’s top brass on Wednesday, Aug. 22, to discuss the rule, according to Pro Football Talk. No major changes to the rule are anticipated.
In the meantime, the league will issue an updated explainer video for officials and teams in the hopes of clarifying the rule. The video, according to ESPN, will include instances from the last two weeks of preseason games that point out the proper and improper application of the rule.
The league could make changes to the rule, but it is not going away. The NFL has said that it wants to do what it can to remove head injuries from the game, and part of that effort includes changing the way players use their helmet. One league official told ESPN they expect the changes will require an overall adjustment period as long as three years.
