The NFL announced this offseason that it was banning the hip-drop tackle. The new rule states that this form of takedown is now a penalty, and will cost the defense 15 yards plus an automatic first down. However, 31 games into the season, the officials have done a poor job of upholding this rule.
Several hip-drop tackles have been spotted in games over the first two weeks of the season, but yellow handkerchiefs have remained in the zebras’ pockets. In fact, sources told CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones the league identified two hip-drop tackles that should have been called as penalties in Week 1.
During the Sunday night matchup between the Houston Texans and Chicago Bears, we saw another hip-drop tackle that led to running back Joe Mixon being injured. Still, the refs did not see anything wrong with the play.
Check out what happened, here:
Mixon immediately left the game and was officially listed as questionable to return with an ankle injury. He did return in the fourth quarter.
While Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards was not penalized for his actions, it sounds like the league still could fine him for this tackle. If you were curious, here’s how the NFL defines the now illegal hip-drop tackle:
It is a foul if a player uses the following technique to bring a runner to the ground: (a) grabs the runner with both hands or wraps the runner with both arms; and (b) unweights himself by swiveling and dropping his hips and/or lower body, landing on and trapping the runner’s leg(s) at or below the knee.
