2020 Rule Changes

Substitutions also affected by position of numerals Sometimes rules changes show up in a place that is least expected. In addition to the standard rules changes voted by owners each year, a few editorial changes are made to the rulebook, some of which are for clarity, while others are actual low-level

It was a silly part of a feud between cornerback Aqib Talib and Michael Crabtree, where Talib twice snatched a chain from Crabtree's neck. The NFL slipped in a rule that would have prevented this from happening again, although they were at least kind enough to wait for the year

Embed from Getty Images A slight tweak to the instant replay casebook has modified a previous rule regarding the reversal of an incomplete pass to a catch and subsequent fumble. Under the new interpretation, when an official rules incomplete pass on the field and there is no clear recovery of the

It was the master who used a loophole in the rules, only to have the student use it against him in a Shakespearean twist. We are now in the third act of the play, where the weapon is buried, never to be used again. Except that is not how this play

NFL owners are meeting remotely via Microsoft Teams to discuss many items for the 2020 season, including 9 rules proposals, 3 bylaws changes, and at least 4 policy resolutions. Football Zebras will be updating this post as information is reported on the status of individual agenda items. A brief summary of

The NFL released the first tranche of modified rules proposals with 7 team-submitted recommendations from the Eagles, Dolphins, Ravens, and Chargers. Typically, the team-backed proposals are dead on arrival; only 4 of the 44 team proposals passed in the last 5 years, plus 2 others that were absorbed into a larger