Football  fans all across the globe enjoy the game for one primary reason: the physicality. Despite this, the physical aspect of football in the National Football League [NFL]  seems to be fading year after year. This offseason has especially seen the most amount of safety reform throughout the league. So far, the NFL has banned the hip drop tackle and they have reformatted the kickoff. This has left fans up in debate and with the question of “What will the league change next and how close is it to becoming non-contact?” 

As previously mentioned, the NFL banned the hip drop tackle and changed the way kickoffs are run. The hip drop tackle is where a defender comes and tackles a ball carrier from behind. In the process of the tackle, the defender would drop their hips, hence the name hip drop tackle, then their hips would land on the lower body of the ball carrier. This form of tackling would commonly result in lower body injuries to the ball carrier. In terms of the kickoff, the NFL has now adopted what is practiced by the Extreme Football League [XFL]. The kickoff will still occur from the 20 yard line, but the players running down on the kick off team along with the blockers on the receiving side will line up five yards from each other. The kicker must kick the ball in what is known as the landing zone, which ranges from the receiving team’s goal line to their 20 yard line. If the ball does not land in the landing zone, it will be treated as a touchback and the ball will be placed at the receiving team’s 40 yard line. If the ball lands in the landing zone, then the returner is required to return it. Additionally, when the kickoff team wants to attempt an onside kick, the receiving team will now be notified of their decision. Both rules changes will, effectively, remove a large part of what makes football one of the most physical sports. This fact alone has generated mixed feelings from fans. For the fans, they either have to prioritize players safety or their own entertainment. 

Some fans are on board with the NFL rule changes and are promoting player safety. Zach Hatala, a senior, says that he was initially “skeptical” with the banning of the hip drop tackle, but, after thinking it over, Hatala thinks that “it kind of makes sense.” Zach believes that the change was made “for similar reasons that the horse collar tackle was banned. They want to get rid of the knee and ankle injuries. Especially when the ankles roll up on guys.” With these changes, Hatala thinks that it will only “help the league and it helps prevent injuries.” However, when it comes to the kickoff reform, Hatala says that he “just do not think that it will work.” Despite the constant rule altering in favor of player safety, Zach believes that the game “will still be physical.” But, when it comes to the tackling, Hatala imagines that players “will have to hit in the upper body area. Probably somewhere near the core just to prevent lower body injuries.” 

Other fans seem to be jumping off the ship of player safety and into the sea of physicality and entertainment. Barry Griffiths, a junior unlike Hatala, thinks that the new kickoff “is a good adjustment.” Barry’s reasoning is that “the blockers have no momentum to block the guys barreling down at them and those guys have a fifteen-yard head start to full sprint.” Nonetheless, as a defensive lineman for the varsity football team, Griffiths believes that “players need the hip drop tackle and the banning makes it harder on defenders to actually do their jobs.” When it comes to viewership Barry says “if the game keeps getting softer, there will not be as many people watching it.” Griffiths doubles down on this point, “you might as well just watch flag football if there is not any physicality at all.” 

Time will tell if these safety precautions will actually translate when it comes to on-field play. Defenders, especially on the collegiate and professional levels, have expressed their displeasure of the hip drop tackle ban through posts on social media. Franchises have even capitalized on the rule changes. The Pittsburgh Steelers added all-pro kick returner Cordarelle Patterson to try to get a leg up on special teams. The dismay of players along with the strategic moves by NFL franchises, could reshape the NFL and the game of football in general to a level that people in the past would never have thought it could have reached.