Leading with the Helmet Question

[cutgrass1121]

Can some one please tell me how a running back can be called for leading with the helmet. We have been called for it twice this year and each time Ive talked to the ref (cordially) after the game, and neither could tell me in a way that makes sense. Im not sure how the physics work when a running back holding the ball with two hand on contact and going to the ground cant have his helmet first. If he lowers his shoulder as every coach in America teaches his head comes with it. I understand on defense but this doesnt make a lick of sense to me, please let me in on this secret.

 

[Fadamor]

I assume the call was illegal hemet contact. This rule applies to all players on the field, not just the defense. In the case of an offensive player, it would either be a butt block (if his head was up) or a spear (if his head was down). Just as a defender is not allowed to tackle by planting his helmet "in the numbers" (the method I was taught as a pee wee player), the runner is also prohibited from doing the same. If a runner puts his head down just prior to contact, he better be trying to wedge between two players and not trying to drive through a player.

These rules are for the safety of the person trying to use their head, not the person the head is being used against. The Rutger's player who was paralyzed a few weeks ago (Eric LeGrand) is a stark reminder of that. Look closely at the slo-mo replay in the following clip. He starts out fine, but dives his head down just prior to contact. THE SAME THING COULD HAPPEN TO A RUNNER.
http://www.refstripes.com/forum/index.php?topic=7217.0

 

[White hat]

If a running back approaches a tackler and drops his head so that he hits him with the top of his helmet, it is illegal helmet contact. It has nothing to do with going to the ground, it's the initial hit wher he makes no attempt to evade the tackler, he wants to go over or through the tackler and does so with his head down.

Here's the secret. The officials do not want the runner to leave the field in an ambulance strapped to a board. They do not want the last steps he takes to be in a game they worked. Does that make a lick of sense?

 

[cutgrass1121]

I am not saying that the kid should be allowed to put him self into a dangerous position. It is just a game played by boy. The refs who made these calls did not explain it to us that way. I understand what the rule is trying to eliminate, but this was called as our running backs were going to the ground with tacklers wrapping him up. So was this a bad call? What is the rule then if the runner lowers his shoulder to contact, is this looked at the same way?

 

[FBRef]

Originally posted by cutgrass1121:
I am not saying that the kid should be allowed to put him self into a dangerous position. It is just a game played by boy. The refs who made these calls did not explain it to us that way. I understand what the rule is trying to eliminate, but this was called as our running backs were going to the ground with tacklers wrapping him up. So was this a bad call? What is the rule then if the runner lowers his shoulder to contact, is this looked at the same way?

There's no rule against lowered the shoulder and making contact. But lowering the helmet and making contact with it is a foul, by any player.

 

[Fadamor]

I'm unsure what a nebulous term such as "going to the ground" actually means, but if he lowered his head at a defender and impacted the defender with his helmet, then he was properly flagged for the foul. "Going to the ground", "levitating", or any other type of altitude change doesn't affect the applicable rule (9-4-3i). The terms used in 9-4-3i are defined in 2-20-1. To wit:

2-20-1: Helmet Contact - Illegal
Illegal helmet contact is an act of initiating contact with the helmet against an opponent. There are several types of illegal helmet contact:
a. Butt Blocking is an act by an offensive or defensive player who initiates contact against an opponent who is not a ball carrier with the front of his helmet.
b. Face Tackling is an act by a defensive player who initiates contact with a ball carrier with the front of his helmet.
c. Spearing is an act by an offensive or defensive player who initiates contact against any opponent with the top of his helmet.

I don't see any exceptions in there for "unless he's going to the ground", do you?



Defenders tackling with their shoulder and keeping their head up is the preferred method of tackling now. As I mentioned, the "helmet in the numbers" method of tackling that I was taught as a teenager has been illegal for at least as long as I have been officiating.



A runner lowering his shoulder is of dubious value because it's mighty difficult to maintain your footing like that. He's essentially giving up on the run. But if he wants to use his shoulder to contact a defender then there's no foul.
This post was edited on 10/27 2:18 PM by Fadamor

 

[White hat]

I'm guessing here, but could it be that the runner lowered his head and hit the defender with his helmet, then the defender still wrapped him up and drug him down soon afterward? And if so, are you expecting a flag to fly at the moment of impact? Because most officials, myself included (and I bet the others on here) don't toss a flag immediately when we see something.

 

[Fadamor]

Yes, it takes a bit of time to process what it is we saw. Did he initiate contact or was he knocked into the other player's helmet? Did I see the whole thing or just the end result? Once those have been internally answered, then the flag is dropped or it isn't. By then (and we're only talking a second or two to process those questions) the player could already be downed, but the foul still happened and should be addressed.

 

[cutgrass1121]

I am fully understanding his rule and agree with it. Thanks guys.