How will the new out-of-bounds rule impact the passing game?
The NFL changed the rule on a reception when a defender knocks the receiver out of bounds before he gets his feet down. It used to be that if the referee determined the pass catcher was going to come down in bounds, then it would be a catch. Now it's black and white, if the defender knocks you out of bounds before two feet come down it is an incompletion.
As former Steelers coach Bill Cowher and I discussed, the effect of the rule last week made it clear receivers have to work a bit further from the sidelines to withstand the knockout. The defenders, especially the safeties coming over the top, will look to knock receivers out of bounds rather than play the ball. In the end, this rule narrows the width of the field the receivers can work with by at least four yards.
The NFL changed the rule on a reception when a defender knocks the receiver out of bounds before he gets his feet down. It used to be that if the referee determined the pass catcher was going to come down in bounds, then it would be a catch. Now it's black and white, if the defender knocks you out of bounds before two feet come down it is an incompletion.
As former Steelers coach Bill Cowher and I discussed, the effect of the rule last week made it clear receivers have to work a bit further from the sidelines to withstand the knockout. The defenders, especially the safeties coming over the top, will look to knock receivers out of bounds rather than play the ball. In the end, this rule narrows the width of the field the receivers can work with by at least four yards.
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