As training camps across all 32 NFL organizations begin to open for the 2024 season, defensive players will need to put greater emphasis on their technique to tackle the ball carrier as league owners approved the ban. of the tackle known as hip-drop and which joins a long list of regulations that have been adopted to try to prevent athletes from suffering so many injuries.
Patrick Willis, the legendary linebacker of the San Francisco 49ers, is a name that resonates strongly with fans. His career was marked by his intensity, tackling ability and leadership on the field. However, in a league that has seen numerous rule changes to protect player safety, the question arises: How would Patrick Willis handle playing in today’s NFL?
The next Hall of Famer expressed to Excelsior their concern about the direction in which these changes are going.
“I fully understand the direction the league is taking. I agree with the attempt to protect the players, but the NFL is losing a bit of its nature and, above all, it is making the work of the defensive players much more difficult. It is increasingly difficult to knock down the opponents. The league is betting on offenses that score more points and that is not good for the defensive players who will lose their shine and perhaps their contracts will not be as big,” said Willis in an interview held in Los Cabos at the beginning of the month.
In March of this year, all 32 NFL owners approved a ban on the hip drop. This type of tackle occurs when a defender wraps around a ball carrier, twisting or turning his hips and landing on the ball carrier’s legs during the tackle. The NFL analyzed more than 20,000 tackles over the past two seasons and determined that this specific technique causes lower extremity injuries at a rate 20 times higher than other tackles, resulting in an unacceptable risk to player health and safety.
This change is a reflection of the league’s continued evolution toward protecting its players, but it is also a reminder of how the game has changed since the days when Willis dominated the field. Willis himself has commented that, although he understands and respects the reasons behind these changes, he feels that the essence of the defensive game is being altered.
Football has always been a contact sport, or it should be kept that way. I understand the need to protect players, but I also think we’re getting to a point where defenders are being too limited in what they can do on the field.”
For a player like Willis, whose strength and technique were essential elements of his game, the current restrictions might have changed the way he played. While his natural talent and skills would have kept him a top player, he would likely have been frustrated by the limitations imposed by the new rules that will be implemented.
With these changes, teams will have to work hard during training camps that begin in July to try to correct their players’ tackling techniques. Willis points out that it will be a challenge for older men to stop tackling as they did for many years. Adapting to these new rules will not be an easy task, but it is a challenge that everyone will have to face to align with the new league regulations.
Coaches should make the most of practice time to correct the technique of players, especially the more veteran ones who are programmed to tackle in that natural way.
Patrick Willis will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in August of this year after completing an eight-season career with the 49ers in which he made 722 tackles, 20.5 sacks, five fumble recoveries and was selected to the Pro Bowl seven times. He won Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards.
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2024-06-30 14:03:22