Football players wear helmets. In violent collisions–which is pretty much the essence of football–helmets sometimes touch. And when helmets touch, defenders get blamed.
When defenders get blamed, they get fined.
So here’s what the NFL needs to do, and where things are probably headed. I present two options:
- Institute flag football rules for quarterbacks. Hang little flags on their hips. When a defender pulls a flag, the quarterback is “sacked.”
- Institute touch football rules for quarterbacks. If a defender touches the quarterback with both hands, he’s tackled. This would have taken away the Giants’ first Super Bowl win, when Eli Manning escaped from a bunch of defenders, but hey, safety first.
