Through the first couple of weeks in the preseason, there has been much cloudiness arising with the new helmet-contact rule in terms of defining what is now deemed a penalty.
According to Chris Mortensen of ESPN, this has led to the NFL to update their current teaching video for the explanation on what the rule is on the field.
Article Continues BelowAmid confusion and angst about the new helmet-contact rule, the NFL is having daily dialogue about the application in preseason games, league sources told ESPN. The league will also assemble an updated video tutorial that will be distributed to game officials, coaches and players once the final preseason games are played and in time for teams preparing for their regular-season openers, according to sources.
This new regulation has brought forth much more issues as there have been many questionable plays called for that penalty while it has swung the other way with a few notable non-calls in the process as well. It is still something that the referees are figuring out themselves as well as this is another rule that they must get used to calling when it occurs. The biggest problem from that standpoint is that there has been no consistency with the type of hit that is being called for that.
It has made it difficult for the players to understand what they can and cannot do on the field to avoid that penalty being assessed against their respective team. This new video should help clear up the air a bit ahead of the final two preseason games where there is bound to be a few more instances where this type of call will be made several more times.
The end goal for the entire situation is that there will be a clear definition of what type of hits will be penalized from this point moving forward.