Advertisement

Banning hip-drop tackles in NFL? No push now, but closer inspection warranted for league

As usual, NFL owners will be greeted by a wide range of rules proposals upon gathering in Phoenix on Sunday for their annual league meetings.

There’s one, courtesy of the Los Angeles Chargers, to alter the formula for playoff seeding. Remember, the Bolts had to hit the road to gag in their wild-card playoff loss at Jacksonville, despite having a much better record than the division-champion Jaguars.

Another effort is on the docket to expand instant replay, proposed by the Los Angeles Rams to allow roughing-the-passer as a reviewable play. Remember, years ago Bill Belichick proposed that any and all plays should be subject to replay inspection.

There are proposals, too, to put the ball on the 25-yard line after touchbacks on punts and with a “fair catch” on a kickoff return.

Yet there’s one thing not on the agenda for next week: Banning the hip-drop tackle.

It’s pegged for further review.

Since Super Bowl 57, the NFL’s competition committee has had extensive discussions about potentially crafting a rule that would eliminate the type of drag-down tackle from behind, similar to the now-illegal horse-collar tackle, that apparently has become an increasing threat.

Interestingly, this potential safety initiative has no support from the leadership of the NFL Players Association, which released a statement in early March opposing a ban on the technique, calling it “unfair to players and unrealistic to implement.”

Hmmm. If the NFL was able to craft a rule to determine what constitutes a catch (hey, Dez Bryant), you’d think they should be able to legislate this one.

“I think the challenge we have is how do you define it?” Rich McKay, the Atlanta Falcons president and chairman of the competition committee, said during a news conference on Friday. “What is the prevalence of it? And how do you get it out of the game? There’s a process to that. That’s what we’ll go through.”

In other words, it’s not up for a vote now…but stay tuned.

Troy Vincent, the NFL’s executive vice president for football operations, said during the conference that the tackling technique became more prevalent last season, to the point that it resulted in an injury rate that he said is “20 times higher” than produced by other tackling forms.

Although the league didn’t provide figures to quantify exactly how many injuries have occurred on hip-drop tackles, it’s apparent that it’s another target looming in the name of health and safety.

The poster image of the technique comes from the NFC divisional playoff game in San Francisco, when Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard was knocked out of the game with a broken leg and high ankle sprain that came on a hip-drop tackle.

Tony Pollard #20 of the Dallas Cowboys reacts on the field after suffering an injury against the San Francisco 49ers during the first half in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Levi's Stadium on January 22, 2023 in Santa Clara, California.
Tony Pollard #20 of the Dallas Cowboys reacts on the field after suffering an injury against the San Francisco 49ers during the first half in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Levi's Stadium on January 22, 2023 in Santa Clara, California.

That same weekend, Kansas City Chiefs MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a high ankle sprain when dragged down by a Jaguars defender whose weight landed on the back of his leg.

Vincent eerily likened the hip-drop tackle to the horse-collar technique that was banned in 2005.

“It’s literally the same mechanics,” said Vincent, who played 15 seasons as an NFL defensive back. “It’s just the player is now (bound) by the waist and (the defender’s) really tripping the runner’s legs. You see it tearing up ankles, knees. It could break a leg.”

McKay wouldn’t declare a timeline for proposing a ban. It’s possible that it could get on the agenda for the spring meetings in May. In the meantime, the league is taking a deep dive on the research and compiling video examples. Next week, input from discussions with head coaches – including former NFL players Mike Vrabel (Titans), Doug Pederson (Jaguars), Frank Reich (Panthers), DeMeco Ryans (Texans), Ron Rivera (Commanders), Dan Campbell (Lions) and Todd Bowles (Buccaneers) – could be vital in assessing the direction of a possible ban.

Perhaps a solution will come without crafting a rule, if the technique is effectively coached out of the game. Then again, such a gray area might also fuel even more controversy.

The disapproval from the players union is significant against the backdrop of critics who might derisively see the potential of a hip-drop ban as another step toward flag football. In the statement from the NFLPA, which came during its annual meeting of player representatives, the union argued that defensive players would be hampered by indecision during split-second situations. The NFLPA also contends that such a rule would be a burden on officials and result in inconsistent calls.

Richard Sherman, the former all-pro cornerback and NFLPA executive board member, expressed sentiments of defensive players during a post recently on Twitter.

“There isn’t one player saying, ‘Hey, I’m about to drop my weight on his ankle when I tackle him,’ “ Sherman tweeted. “Defense is Hard enough with the rules about roughing the QB and interference. This would be overkill.”

McKay sounds undeterred.

"We’re on it and we understand that there is injury data that says we should be looking at this,” McKay said. “So, we are.”

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFL not moving to ban controversial hip-drop tackles yet. Here's why.