How NFL Players are Reacting to New Rules

Source: https://thenypost

The economic principle I’m exploring is “Institutions are the “rules of the game” that influence choices.”

My research question to help me study the economic principle is “What new rules and regulations have been put in to make the game safer for its players”

The article published on ESPN titled “The NFL's latest safety measures face resistance from players

” demonstrates this economic principle by arguing that the new rules implemented in the game can make the game safer, but can also restrict some of the players from playing their best.

First, the NFL has spent a lot of time, money, and effort to make the game safer for its players, but there’s one problem. A lot of the players don’t like some of these rules even though they do make the game safer. Example, Eric Weddle, safety for the Baltimore Ravens said,"You don't want to fault them for putting in the effort to finding the best helmets and keeping players safe and all that. But the biggest problem I have is this: How do you not consult with the players and have them agree with it? You make these changes. Well, we play the game. How are you going to make these cultural changes without asking us? They think that it's going to make the game better and safer. It's not." So the NFL put more regulations on helmets to help with concussions and everything because in the 2017-2018 season there were a total of around 290 concussions during that season. The problem with that and main argument that Weddle is saying is that the NFL should’ve talked to the people actually using the helmets, aka the players on what they should do to the helmets to make them safer to wear and more comfortable as well. VICIS helmets did what Weddle said to do, they talked to the players about it and made them as safe and as comfortable as possible.

Second, another rule that many players are hating is targeting. This evolved rule limits defensive players on hitting players in certain situations. Especially against quarterbacks, since they have the most value, they need to be protected the most. The problem with this is that players like Clay Matthews for the Green Bay Packers can’t hit players the same way and get flagged for most of the hits they apply on offensive players, especially quarterbacks.

Third, these two rules just take some of the fun out of the game and gives fans less to watch in the game. Since the players can’t hit people the same way as a couple years ago, they are more restricted in what they can and cannot do which means less big hits. Big hits are what a lot of fans, especially what I like to see. And since they have to play safe there is less excitement in the game of football and more and more fans and players are getting frustrated about these new rules.

In my next blog post I will research the question: How are parents reacting to the new rules and regulations being embedded to make football safer?