He is not running towards his own goal line and he is blocking with his hands and arms. This is a legal block.
There are two issues here, completely separate:
1. Helmet to helmet
2. Blindside block
The former applies to any LEADING with the helmet on any play, including a RB with the ball initiating contact by leading with the helmet. People are pretending like this was a dirty play because of this type of contact which is STANDARD for any linemen on any block, as the GIFs demonstrate. If one is going to argue from this point, that the hit by Tyron Smith was DIRTY period.
As far as the second rule, this was not a BLINDSIDE block, as the note under the rule states. That is in reality what the rule is discussing, not any block that occurs parallel or towards the end-zone of the blocker. That situation for example is found when the receiving team of a punt is blocking the punting team from running to the guy receiving the kick.
What makes that blindside so dangerous is that the person getting hit has no way to protect themselves. He’s completely exposed and has no way to know a hit is about to happen.
Both GIFs I showed are demonstrating how asinine this “helmet to helmet” rule is in regards to blocking. This isn’t leading with the helmet as it’s generally understood on the field, blockers do this ALL THE TIME.
To cry about what this TE did, while pretending it was dirty, is bogus.