It’s rarely called during a game. It’s routinely the subject of league-imposed fines.
More than six years ago, the NFL outlawed the lowering of the helmet to initiate forcible contact with an opponent. Over the years, many players have been fined and/or warned after the fact, even if a flag is almost never thrown during a game. And, unlike a facemask foul not spotted in real time, hardly anyone even notices when a violation occurs.
For Week 14, a pair of running backs received fines of $45,020 for the use of the helmet — Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco and Buccaneers running back Rachaad White.
Three other players were fined for the same infraction in Week 14: Bengals safety Geno Stone ($22,511), Chiefs guard Trey Smith ($18,881), and Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster ($6,722).
That’s three Chiefs players in all, with total fines in excess of $70,000.
The league added the rule in order to make the game safer, both for the player using the helmet and the player struck by it. Still, the technique remains in the game. In the end, it’s essentially a device for taking money out of the pockets of players who play football instinctively.
Maybe some players manage in the heat of the battle to not yield to those instincts. Maybe it happens less than it used to. Regardless, it’s hard to imagine the technique ever being eradicated from the game — unless and until football is played without helmets.
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