ORLANDO, Fla. -- While much of the attention at the NFL meetings that concluded Wednesday was on the league's makeover of the catch rule, a player safety rule was passed that could cause some controversial plays in 2018.
The league passed a rule on the recommendation of the Competition Committee to make it a 15-yard penalty on any player who initiates contact by lowering his head and using the crown of his helmet. Players also can be ejected for such plays, though the league is still trying to decide how that will be adjudicated.
"The rule is in place. There are still some questions about the administration of the rule and replay in connection with the rule, questions about in-game ejections and how officials will handle those," Steelers president Art Rooney II said Wednesday.
That applies for an offensive or defensive player, and it's something geared toward player safety, which the league is trying to get out in front of. Mike Tomlin, a member of the Competition Committee, said all too often the league doesn't promote what it is doing to create a more safe environment for its players -- as opposed to circling the wagons when player safety is mentioned.
"We talk a lot about what needs to be done. And we haven’t talked about what we’ve done and I think that we should highlight that," Tomlin said. "We’ve done a lot of things in recent years to improve the quality of the game and the safety within the game at all levels. I think that is being addressed. I think that should be talked about more as opposed to what is not being done."
The crown-of-the-helmet rule is one that hits close to home for Tomlin and the Steelers. Ryan Shazier often lowered his head at the point of impact, not maliciously, but as a natural reaction. It was something he had done since he first started playing the game.
I asked Rooney if Shazier's injury was involved in the decision for the league to implement a rule such as this.
"I would hesitate to say that was the impetus for it," Rooney said Wednesday. "I think the Competition Committee has noticed that we still have players using the helmet as a weapon and the intent is really to get that out of the game."
And yet if you watch a replay of the tackle that resulted in Shazier suffering a serious spinal injury last Dec. 4 at Cincinnati, you'll note he lowers his head at impact. It turned a tackle that was not all that violent into one that resulted in serious injury.
Decreasing those kind of plays and injuries -- particularly head injuries caused by helmet-to-helmet contact -- has long been a goal of the league. Penalizing players for using their helmets as a weapon is part of that.
Figuring out the best way to administer the rule will now be in the hands of team owners moving forward.
"I think we do have questions about what the standard will be for (it) and ejection and how close officials are going to call that or be advised to interpret the rule," Rooney said. "There are going to be some follow-up meetings between now and the May meeting with coaches and players to just get everybody’s input, and the officiating group, so that everybody gets a clear understanding on how that part of it is going to be handled."
Tomlin has been part of safety initiatives that start at the lower levels of the game -- as young as the youth leagues -- that focus on players keeping their eyes up and seeing what they tackle. The thought is teaching good tackling habits early.
But because the league takes a bunker mentality when it comes to player safety, in fear of lawsuits, Tomlin doesn't feel it does a good enough job of highlighting the positive safety aspects it takes.
"I do, and you know, I think we’re part of it, to be quite honest with you," Tomlin said. "I just think that we should highlight some of the things that we’ve done more than we have to this point because we have taken strong measures to improve the safety of the game for the players, and not only at our level, but at all levels."
It's important to Tomlin. Not only is he responsible for the players on his own roster but, as a member of the Competition Committee, he is also involved in the safety of all of the players in the league, as is Rooney, as a team owner.
But for Tomlin, it's more. Both of his high school-aged sons play football. Football is a violent game. And players get injured. But Tomlin has no qualms about allowing his own sons to participate.
"I think it teaches valuable life lessons," Tomlin said. "Hard work, teamwork, commitment to calls that are bigger than ourselves. I just think that there are so many lessons from participation in team sports. And football, in my opinion, is the ultimate team sport."