The NFL is looking at banning the hip-drop tackle and Buccaneers’ head coach Todd Bowles Isn’t a fan of the idea.
During the annual league meetings Bowles talked with USA Today about this. His response was to the point.
“We play the game at 100 miles an hour. It’s a physical game. You’ve got to tackle how you’ve got to tackle.”
Obviously the league and coaches like Bowles understands the safety concerns. And there is precedent for banning certain tackles. You have to look no further than 2005 and the implementation of the “horse-collar tackle” ban.
The stat put fourth by the NFL executive vice president for football operations Troy Vincent is that the hip-drop tackles had an injury rate “20 times higher” than other styles of tackling.
Bowles gets the concern, but doesn’t want anymore restrictions being put on tackling, period!
“There’s going to be collateral damage,” Bowles stated. “You want to limit it as much as possible. You don’t want nobody getting hurt, but it’s hard to tell somebody how to tackle. The angles are different. The speed is different. I don’t know how you stop it. ‘Don’t tackle high. Don’t tackle low. Don’t hip-drop.’ What are you going to tell a guy? Some guys are more athletic than others. Where does it stop? I mean, goddamn. Just play 7-on-7 and the game will be over.”
The league has yet to provide any data to support their “20 times higher” allegations.
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