Five years ago, the NFL quietly made a massive change to the rulebook, making it a foul for any player to lower his head and make contact with an opponent.
It started simply: “Lowering the head to initiate contact with the helmet is a foul.”
It is now more complicated. The current rule contemplates the making of “forcible” contact, without the requirement that the player be the one to initiate the contact. It also encompasses any part of the helmet, including the facemask. The 2023 rule appears below.
“It is a foul if a player: (a) lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent; or (b) uses any part of his helmet or facemask to butt or make forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck area. These provisions do not prohibit incidental contact by the mask or the helmet in the course of a conventional tackle or block on an opponent.”
The rule rarely gets enforced during games. It is enforced far more regularly by the league office, via fines and warnings issued after games. In 2022, for example, there were 229 total fines and warnings for lowering the helmet — but only four penalties called during games.
Of the fines, half were rescinded on appeal. Also, 48 percent of the fines were issued to running backs.
It’s a stunning disconnect between the officiation of the game and the administration of fines. The league has tried in recent years to button up the language in order to make it easier to win the appeals of the fines. That doesn’t explain the absence of penalty flags.
The league is in a delicate spot here. It wants to make the game safer. But this key rule aimed at enhancing safety isn’t being enforced during games. The enforcement is coming after the fact, with players facing financial consequences.
To the extent that some teams are possibly coaching improper techniques, the punishment needs to extend beyond the players. Whether it’s fines on organizations and/or coaches, or perhaps stripped draft picks or cap space, the league needs to be more creative if it hopes to legislate forcible helmet contact out of the game. Especially if the officials aren’t equipped to spot the various violations in real time.
The sky judge concept could help. The reality could be that, in plenty of cases, these fouls aren’t obvious. When it happens to the ball carrier, or when the ball carrier does it, it’s easier to see. When it happens away from the ball, it could be more difficult to spot it.
Regardless, work needs to be done to limit these violations. And to ensure that more of them are caught when they happen.
