Is It A Question Of Can Or Will With The NFL’s Control Over Big Hits?

Players on the defensive side of football live for one instinct after the ball is hiked; hit the person with the ball as hard as you can.

That impulse isn’t new to the sport; the big hit is not only what players look for, but what fans tune in to watch for. That’s been the foundation of football and what the league is built upon.

Granted, these days the NFL has cut down on the bone-jarring hits that laid the groundwork the sport grew upon. No longer can players clothesline, horse-collar tackle, or throw their forearms to an opponent’s head like the old NFL Films showcase on ESPN.

The belief is that today the NFL is safer and more protective of its players today by categorizing what a legal tackle is. Although the league is better suited in protecting its players today than in the past, there is still a high level of concern in regards to big hits on the field.

With the alterations made in the rule book on legalizing tackles, two big questions remain on both sides regarding the issue of regulating hits: can the NFL find a way to control big hits on players and will the NFL want to control big hits on players?

Over the past few years, the NFL has changed the rules on hitting on the field in hopes of saving their players from season (and sometimes career ending) injuries and long-term health issues. The concern regarding players and concussions is one of the biggest reasons why the sport began policing hits over the last decade.

Until recently, the problem with concussions was merely a subject football officials danced around and players understood little about. According to a New York Times article, players who show any significant signs of concussion must now be cleared by brain-injury experts unaffiliated with the team and cannot return to a game or practice after such an injury occurs.

Along with concerns over concussions, the NFL has worked hard to make players safer on the field and changed its rules on hitting after the 2009 season.

The NFL decided to change the rules so that defenders can no longer deliver their shoulder or forearms to their opponent’s helmet when that offensive player is in the act of catching the ball, a report in the Washington Post clarifies. The report also goes on to explain that players on offense also may not deliver a helmet, shoulder or forearm as a blindside block to a defender’s head.

Despite the changes, the NFL appears to have more work cut out for them given how the league has just finished the first six weeks of the season.

Along with a long list of notable injuries players have sustained, the biggest notable injury of the season appears to be Atlanta Falcons CB Dunta Robinson letting himself loose head-on into Philadelphia Eagles WR DeSean Jackson’s helmet area in the second quarter. Both players were diagnosed with concussions, with Jackson suffering memory loss with no recollection of the hit.

While it appears unclear if the changes for tackling in the NFL can improve safety precautions in the league, the answer may tilt more in the vicinity of will for the league’s officials.

Will, as in, will the NFL look to ensure that tackling is cleaned up to allow players to remain safe in the league?

Big hits are a big draw to the NFL like car crashes are for NASCAR; fans tune in or attend the races in hopes to see a huge, smoldering wreckage between cars. It’s the same for NFL fans who want to see the destruction of bodies slamming hard into one another.

Seeing players nearly decapitate one another or flip players upside down in the air like a WWE wrestling move brings out “oohs” and “aahs” through fan’s lips. The appeal not only raises interest in the fans, but money the fans will throw to purchase tickets and advertisers pay to continue to produce the game on television.

The league understands that big hits are the biggest draw to the league; if they wanted players to be absolutely safe, they would force them to play with flags around their waist or rule that touching the players with two hands is enough for a tackle.

Although there is nothing constituting that the league is in favor of more big hits in the league, the recent changes on tackling and problems with injuries make it clear that the league needs continue to improve regulating tackles. The safety and lives of the players will always be in the hands of the league.

Only time will tell if the league can find a way to regulate tackling while keeping the body-rocking hits that keep the fans coming back to the NFL wanting more.