new players will come in and become top QBs it's inevitable. players like wilson, luck, cam, carr, etc all have the ability to be top 5 QBs for the next 8-10 years. plus who knows what college QB is gonna be a future pro bowler in the NFL.
really great post. qb protection has been a big part of it, the big part is definitely them taking away the safeties ability to hit guys and jar the ball loose. they have essentially removed that from the game.
If you want to make life harder on QBs without making the game more dangerous, allow defensive backs to get away with more contact before the ball gets to the receiver. No hard hits but completion percentage drops dramatically.
I don't think that would make the game better. Know what would? Make the field the same size as the Canadian field, give the receivers more room to operate in, also makes for wider splits on the line which changes a lot of things too. But we all know none of that will happen.
Sure there will always be a set of top 5 QBs, but the point is will this next generation be as good as the outgoing generation. It's early, but I'm not sure that the Luck, Wilson, Carr and Cam crew will ever me as dominant or deep as the Brady, Mannings, Brees, Rothlisberger, Rivers crew.
I love football, but I too am getting very concerned about the long term damage being done to those who play it. I don't know much about rugby, but I watch when I go abroad. Always been amazed how they play this game of tackling without any padding and no one seems to get seriously injured. You just don't see guys being "taken to the locker room" or "removed from the field on a stretcher." It seems to me that they tackle opponents only from below the waist. I wonder if that's the rule, and whether the same could apply to the NFL? I'm sure it would make the game safer, whether it would make the game better or worse from a competition standpoint is the big question.
It used to be you could obstruct the receivers for ten yds. Now it is five. That make a real difference. Additionally, make it a fifteen yd. penalty for interference unless the receiver is pulled down from behind. Today's nfl is like playing two hand touch with your friends.
the performance enhancers that everyone said i dont want to know about are the big difference. we were talking in another thread that darron lee cant be an ilb because he is entirely too small and gets dominated, he weighs 220 lbs.... these guys are too big and too fast at this point to avoid injuries. in the nfl they still use their head as a weapon and dont get penalized unless its a qb or receiver. the way the game was played 25 years ago was rough on those guys but nothing like it would be today if they allowed them to battle like they used to.
If you want to make life tougher for the offenses without endangering QB's or WR's in the process you have to give the defensive players more freedom to use their hands as the play develops. Allow pass defenders to keep their hands on the receivers as long as they don't close them or redirect or otherwise obstruct the movement path of the receiver. This would allow defenders to maintain a point of reference with the receiver while also being able to look back at the QB. The current rule allows only incidental contact after 5 yards by the defender to protect himself from impending contact with the receiver. The new rule would require an obstruction penalty, similar to the current holding penalty, 5 yards and a 1st down if the official thought the defender was obstructing or redirecting the opponent instead of just maintaining contact. Note that Darrelle Revis in his prime would have been toned down a bit by this penalty since he was a master of redirecting the opponent slightly downfield by small contacts in violation of the current rule. You also have to eliminate the pick plays that teams like the Patriots have mastered. No more interfering with a defender to prevent him from getting to the person he is supposed to cover. A pick by a receiver would be 5 yards and loss of down. That penalty would stop picks dead in their tracks. You'd have to work out a good method of determining when a pick was intentional and when it was accidental. No idea how they do that offhand but I am sure they could figure it out given that the announcers call picks routinely when they see one set. There's also an argument for redefining the sidelines rules on catches in two different ways: 1. No longer allow force outs of players in the air. A player who catches the ball in bounds is considered in bounds if he is pushed out before he lands by an opponent. 2. 2 flat feet in bounds or an ankle or higher with no other part out of bounds at the same time required to make a catch legal if the player is not in contact with an opponent. No more toe-dragging catches. The point of both rules is to minimize contact on the sidelines, which is a safety measure, as well as make catches on the sidelines obviously in or out in most cases and a bit easier to defend since if you need 2 flat feet in it will make the safe area to get too a bit smaller.
I've been saying for years that they need to go back to the old style of football: minimum pads - a helmet with a single bar or no bar face guard; cleats, thin shoulder pads; a protective cup. Also, go back to two-way football, where you play offense and defense. That way, when you decide to blindside a receiver over the middle, they'll have the chance to "repay the favor" when you go on offense. And while I'm being reactionary, I would also get rid of radio communication with the QB, and only allow 3 substitutions per game, injuries included, like soccer. This way it severely limits the micromanaging by control-freak HCs, and allows the players to play the game. I know all of this is complete fantasy, but I believe it would drastically reduce injuries and improve the game. Go ahead and laugh.
It would definitely get the player sizes down because having to play 130 plays a game would make the 300+ lb guys no longer viable.
One thing that could really even the game out is if holding penalties were called properly. It's infuriating to watch a team with a stellar defense go slaughter journeyman QB behind an O-line with 3 or 4 pro bowlers, then go to New England or Green Bay where there are 4 O-linemen on IR, and never get close enough touch the QB because of massive holding on every play that never gets called. They say "Holding happens on every play". Well, start calling it on every play until it stops happening. It will be a painful several weeks, or months. Then maybe we can enjoy some football.
You can't turn the game into a non-stop whistlefest. We've all watched those games and we've hated every minute of them. Also, any offensive lineman worth his salt is going to hold if the alternative is giving somebody a free run at the QB. The chewing out on the sidelines is a hell of a lot less painful than watching your QB in the concussion protocol or sidelined for the season.
Well they have to do something because the inconsistency right now makes the game painful to watch. Fans watch their team have a big play wiped out on a holding call only to see the other team getting away with holds on a TD drive. It makes you question if the rules really matter or worse, if they are deciding who they want to win. another thing I think they should call more is offensive pass interference. Far too many pick plays being ran every week. Some teams run em every 3rd down all game and then your team gets into the red zone and they throw a flag. its nonsense
Yes, the NFL needs to stop bubble-wrapping only franchise QB's. They need to bubble-wrap all QB's. This is a fault of the unwritten officiating guidelines.
I have never played Rugby but know a bunch of guys that have. They all have said in one way or another that the lack of padding adds a level of respect to the hit. You aren't trying to knock the guys head off both out of respect for the opposing player and the fact you will hurt yourself as well. Should they switch to a different style of padding it would simply allow them to cushion the blows as oppose to becoming human ram rods. Also, one of the reasons the NHL has switched to full facemasks is that players are more marketable when they are recoqnizable. Imagine the marketing if suddenly they were wearing a modern version of the old leather helmets and mouthguards. Every face on the team would be recognizable.
If you're gonna make the league truly QB driven...you need to make it easier for QB's to have success. 32 teams..and only 4 have a competent signal caller...that isnt parity. It's just a harsher version of the NBA. The Jets QB situation is a prime example of the issue. How does an NYC franchise that is supposed to be a fixture of primetime struggle so bad to simply be competent at the game's most crucial position? Yeah...it's likely the Jets only fault for being incompetent...but imagine a league where moSt teams had competent QB play. Suddenly all these other aspects of the game that we love would matter again..bad offenses would still be somewhat functional & at least watchable. Right now..if you don't have a QB...or at least an OC who is able to construct a functional scheme in spite of a crappy QB...teams might as well just forfeit all their games.
same thing people said with aikman, elway, marino, favre etc. and now it's even easier for QBs to be good with the offense friendly rules. Even guys like stafford and ryan are crushing records of the HOFers from 1 gen ago.
4? thats an exxagerration TOP tier QBs Brees Ryan Rivers Brady Rodgers Cam Wilson Carr Ben Below top tier Cousins Luck Rivers Palmer Dak Solid/competent Eli Dalton Flacco Bradford Smith Close to competent Bortles Winston Marriotta Wentz Taylor Trash/not competent Fitzpatrick Anyone in Cleveland Siemein Oswieler Tannehill Kapernick Cutler That's at least 18 QBs that are more then good enough to lead their teams into a SB and 4 more young guys with potential. Realistically only about 10 teams have trash at QB and sadly we are one of them. Cle, SF, Chi, Den, Hou are right there with us for sure
Maybe I'm just sick of us being absolutely PUTRID behind center..and our chief rival being flawless..it has warped my perception. That said..A few of the names you have as competent or close to...I don't agree w...that said..I see your point.It's more about our team being absolutely CLUELESS...than it is a systemic league wide epidemic.
