Tony C said:
Right. It's really a conundrum. The idea of just tackling in the jersey area is fine for rugby where you have scrums and such (Gronk would be a monster there, right?), but in football it'd completely transform the game. Being able to go low is essential to any undersized guy --i.e, most defensive backs -- stopping open field runners. I've always thought that, again with rugby in mind, that getting rid of helmets or drastically redesigning them into soft pads would do the trick...
See, I cant buy into this line of thought. Open field tackles are plenty common and have greater consequences in Rugby given the man on man defense necessitated by the basic rules. Gang tackle someone and the other team has at least one free man somewhere. Miss a tackle off a scrum/ruck/maul and its off to the races!
I had the luxury of attending the 1995 Rugby World Cup in person. Jonah Lomu was the unstoppable force, a tight end body playing a wide receiver position with no penalty of speed or athleticism despite his size. (Jonah's 95 highlight reel is a unending wave of "that has to hurt"). And yet, the SA scrum half (Joost) at all of 88 kg brought Jonah and his 120 kg to a screeching halt with a perfect form tackle in the open field (saved a likely try that would have stood over full time!). It may have cost his team a few yards (at most) which, admittedly, are not as crucial in Rugby.
All the same, this type of tackle happens every weekend at all levels of Rugby. Yet the juggernaut that is the NFL can't figure out how to wrap up and take down an offensive player without destroying knees or concussing heads? (BTW, I'm still incredulous that Brady's knee was shredded by a player nearly prone on the ground. That play is illegal in Rugby; have to be on your feet to make a play....why isn't that a sensible rule for the NFL?).
It's all because the defender has no incentive to protect themselves thanks to body armor. I lost track of how many football guys came out to play Rugby and left the field injured because they launched at the opposing player. Or how many guys were wrecked by the wrestlers. These guys instinctively knew how to use someone's own body again themselves.
Surely the finest specimens of athleticism in the land (alleged...I'm a rugby homer can ya tell?) can do better than mere ruggers and ostracized (from the Olympics) Greco roman wrestlers???
Even looking at this as "product" and "entertainment", the NFL is doing a poor job of protecting their investment. Healthy Gronk is good for the game. Ward shredding a knee, eh, not so much. (FTR, MLB should protect catchers at the plate under similar logic.)
Maybe in another post I can marvel at how one referee and two line judges manage to corral most effectively 30 men on a pitch...