The League Needs a Rule Around the Scrum

[Rockport]

The Eagles are abusing this and it is a cheat code, imo. When you can't stop a team from. 3 yards away because the ball carrier is being carried by 3 guys, it is a problem. I am so sick of watching it. The Eagles lose many games if they are not able to do this bull....

They were hard enough to stop in 2017 with their sneaks...now it is ridiculous level.

What type of rules should be put in place to mitigate this football travesty? I am thinking something like, "No more than one player can push a ball carrier on a given play".

Here is an article on it that talks about how the league changed the rule in 2005...

https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2022-12-30/pushing-the-pile-nfl-rule-officiating#:~:text=For decades, NFL rules prohibited,was too difficult to legislate.

Couldn’t agree more.

 

[Rockport]

1. It's football.
2. Just because the division rival has success doing it doesn't mean that it should be outlawed.
3. You put your QB at risk. He could take a nasty shot to the head in the pile or his hand could be tangled up. It's not like it's a safe play, but it's one you feel fine running when your salary cap commitment at the position is like $1M vs. $50M.
4. By all means lets put more rules in that will result in more punts and other Jason Garrett style spineless decisions. That drives fan interest (insert clapping here)!

It’s not football when you have 3 or more players literally pick up the QB and push him forward. That’s rugby.

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

A team gains an advantage and we're looking for the ref to make it illegal? Weak sauce.

Nothing stopping us from taking advantage of it as well, except we probably cant do it.

Like how we refuse to use pick plays.

 

[acr731]

So we want to outlaw plays like this but the hip drop tackles that are breaking legs are within the rules?

Oh, I get it, we're against this because the Eagles have perfected it. It still didn't help them win the game, though.

 

[starfan1]

A team gains an advantage and we're looking for the ref to make it illegal? Weak sauce.

Nothing stopping us from taking advantage of it as well, except we probably cant do it.

we use it as well when were not doing jet sweeps and passing on 2nd and short

 

[noshame]

I'm pretty sure they'll address this in the meetings there'll be no pushing and no pulling

 

[StarOfGlory]

The only way to really stop it is to get two big mofos and bearclaw the A gaps. It helps them that their 6’8” 365 pound left tackle was an Aussie rugby player who is right at home doing that play.

 

[NorthTexan95]

It doesn't bother me but one way to regulate it is this: don't allow players to push the quarterback in the back to gain yards. It used to be illegal for anyone to push a player forward and I wouldn't be opposed to going back to that. However, simply eliminating it in this one situation would help.

 

[JustChip]

My way to stop it would be in the regular season, with the game not on the line have a backup safety or linebacker try to time the snap polamalu style and hit him in the head with a running start. If he doesn’t time it right? Oh well, just hit him anyways. NFL will change the rule real quick when Hurts is wobbling to the sideline from getting hit by an offsides player.

Might not be good sportsmanship but if I can’t stop a play in the NFL I’m going to find a way to make it so costly they stop it, like the option going partially out of style from getting RG3 killed.

Just adopt a hockey style enforcer. A Conrad Dobler / Mike Tyson type guy..

 

[RonnieT24]

Like how we refuse to use pick plays.

When we run them they get flagged. Hell if the Cowboys start having too much success with biguns carrying Dak for first downs they will either adapt some obscure rule to stop it or make up a new one.

 

[BleedSilverandBlue]

The refs should probably blow the whistle once the pile is stopped/forward progress is stopped. They would do that during a normal play to protect the runner, especially if the runner were a QB.

This right here. Forward progress is stopped cold on many of these scrum runs for 2-3 seconds before Hurts finally falls forward from the force of 3 running backs pushing him.

On any other run that whistle is blown and the play is dead, but for some reason the refs love to let that play go for an unreasonable amount of time.

 

[Jake]

The Eagles are abusing this and it is a cheat code, imo. When you can't stop a team from. 3 yards away because the ball carrier is being carried by 3 guys, it is a problem. I am so sick of watching it. The Eagles lose many games if they are not able to do this bull....

They were hard enough to stop in 2017 with their sneaks...now it is ridiculous level.

What type of rules should be put in place to mitigate this football travesty?

None.

Nothing is stopping other teams from doing the same thing. Seems the real source of frustration is how well the hated Eagles execute it.

 

[Ken]

None.

Nothing is stopping other teams from doing the same thing. Seems the real source of frustration is how well the hated Eagles execute it.

Sure, they have taking exploiting it to a whole new level.

I doubt we want the whole league doing this...it will be ridiculous.

 

[Calvin2Tony2Emmitt2Julius]

Lol you're the only person who still wants Zeke on this team

Not exactly !!!!!! Raises hand for keeping Zeke!

 

[Calvin2Tony2Emmitt2Julius]

Not against Drafting a RB in the Later rounds. Not against letting our youngin get some more touches or designating Pollard as #1 RB

I am against letting zeke get away when we can have him at a much cheaper Rate

 

[Calvin2Tony2Emmitt2Julius]

Want four killer backs next season and a Commitment to the run game. Let's get back to OUR style of football

 

[mrmojo]

It doesn't bother me but one way to regulate it is this: don't allow players to push the quarterback in the back to gain yards. It used to be illegal for anyone to push a player forward and I wouldn't be opposed to going back to that. However, simply eliminating it in this one situation would help.

They regulated the FG block teams from using another player as leverage to block a kick, they can do same with pushing another player forward.

 

[Chuck 54]

There were no linemen in the backfield.
First, you have one of the biggest, strongest OLs in the NFL, anchored by a perennial pro bowl center.
Then you have a big QB who works out hard to be powerful in his lower body because he has to run inthat offense.
Finally, you have a huge, strong WR like AJ Brown and the RB pushing from behind with a third guy seeing the direction of least resistance and coming in late for a directional push.

Meanwhile the defense has the DL and the LB, not a 3-deep push, because the defense doesn’t want to risk jamming too many guys in there just to see a pass in the flat or a sweep.

I get that thinking in the playing field, but on the goal line, I’ll bet we see more 3 DL head up on the C and inside the guards….then 2 big LBs behind them and a 3rd LB stacked behind them so they have 3 levels of push. Then at least we will see what they have planned behind that set up.

 

[Creeper]

You may get your wish. Pat Kirwan and Jim Miller were talking about it on the radio earlier today and Kirwan claims he spoke to someone in the league about it. Kirwan also claimed it is a very dangerous play and talked about how offensive or defensive linemen can get broken necks if their heads get caught in the wrong positions and both sides of the pile keep pushing against each other. Kirwan claimed it happens in rugby. I have no idea if it's true or not. They claimed the league is going to look at it, but I am not sure how they outlaw it.

 

[Vanilla2]

The rule should be that once a player hits the pile and tried to push the play should over. Just like what they do to the defenders.