Two things I would change. One is a matter of safety, and the other is just something that sort of irks me to be honest.
Change number one: Amend tackling rules.
This is the safety related one. Impact tackles are common in american football, and sort of necessary. But what if they weren't a thing? What if the rules were changed to force more rugby style "wrap up" tackles instead? If you're worried about how yardage is determined, just change it accordingly. Personally, I think wherever the player's knee touches the ground should count as where the ball is spot, though. This would remove the need for impact tackles to try and limit gained yardage by stretching etc, while also reducing the incidence rate of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is a major issue for the sport as a whole.
Change number two: Make it so that the ball has to be touched down in the end zone to count as a touchdown
Okay so this one just irks me a little. Why is it called a touchdown if you don't actually have to touch down? There is an upside to this suggestion though. Changing this rule would force a rethink on strategy in many cases. You'd see a lot less grindy 1 yard touchdowns for a start, because the defence will always have an advantage trying to halt a run up the middle. The pass game in general would require a lot of rethinking too, because you can't rely on sideline passes into the end zone and a receiver's ability to "toe tap" to score points. Instead you'd have to try to force mismatches and get players open. It might reduce the frequency of scoring, but then you have to consider how to handle downs in the end zone if the ball ISN'T touched down... but that's for better football minds than mine. I just think it would be interesting to see how such a change impacts the sport.
Change number one: Amend tackling rules.
This is the safety related one. Impact tackles are common in american football, and sort of necessary. But what if they weren't a thing? What if the rules were changed to force more rugby style "wrap up" tackles instead? If you're worried about how yardage is determined, just change it accordingly. Personally, I think wherever the player's knee touches the ground should count as where the ball is spot, though. This would remove the need for impact tackles to try and limit gained yardage by stretching etc, while also reducing the incidence rate of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is a major issue for the sport as a whole.
Change number two: Make it so that the ball has to be touched down in the end zone to count as a touchdown
Okay so this one just irks me a little. Why is it called a touchdown if you don't actually have to touch down? There is an upside to this suggestion though. Changing this rule would force a rethink on strategy in many cases. You'd see a lot less grindy 1 yard touchdowns for a start, because the defence will always have an advantage trying to halt a run up the middle. The pass game in general would require a lot of rethinking too, because you can't rely on sideline passes into the end zone and a receiver's ability to "toe tap" to score points. Instead you'd have to try to force mismatches and get players open. It might reduce the frequency of scoring, but then you have to consider how to handle downs in the end zone if the ball ISN'T touched down... but that's for better football minds than mine. I just think it would be interesting to see how such a change impacts the sport.
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