The NFL has greenlit a dozen new helmet choices for players, including 8 models specifically for quarterbacks and linemen:
The NFL has unveiled a dozen new helmets for players to choose from in 2024, 8 of which are specifically for quarterbacks and linemen on both sides of the ball. Helmets for quarterbacks are meant to limit the impact to the back of the head when falling backwards. Offensive and defensive linemen collide every snap, so their helmets are meant to protect the front of the head. New Orleans Saints players have been quick to adopt these new equipment options in the past, so we may see more of them this season.
Quarterbacks and linemen are the only positions with helmets catered to them, with hopes wide receivers and defensive backs join this group in 2025. Linebackers and running backs being left out feels on par with how the NFL views the positions. They aren’t viewed as valuable financially. Despite being two of the most violent positions, they aren’t next up for specially designed helmets.
This isn’t the first rollout of position specific helmets, rather a rollout of new models. Last year, only nine quarterbacks and 20 linemen took advantage of these choices. Six of the new helmets have been deemed safe enough to not need the Guardian Cap worn by players in practice. There’s a hope the chance to ditch the Guardian Cap will make more players wear the new helmet. We’ll see whether any Saints players make the switch when practices pick up this summer.
Forget the contract and schematic fit. The real question is which jersey number is Chase Young going to use with the New Orleans Saints?
The New Orleans Saints made a splash in free agency by signing Chase Young, who could do a lot to change Cameron Jordan’s role and allow them to both play their best football. But beyond the salary cap ramifications of acquiring Young and how he’ll fit into the defense, we’ve got to consider the most important question: what jersey number is Young going to be wearing?
Young has worn two different numbers in the NFL, choosing No. 99 (with Washington) and No. 92 (with San Francisco). Right now, both of those are taken by Khalen Saunders and Tanoh Kpassagnon, respectively. Before he turned pro Young used No. 2 at Ohio State, and while that is available the Saints showed last year they didn’t understand the new rules by not allowing Jason Pierre-Paul to wear a linebacker number. They insisted he be listed as a defensive end, who are not eligible for wearing single digits.
What about Young’s high school number? He transferred from St. Vincent Pallotti High School, where he wore No. 34, to DeMatha Catholic High School, where he switched to No. 9. Drew Brees’ number is unofficially retired, so we can scratch that out. Which means the only number Young has used before, No. 34, is also the only one still available. But it isn’t eligible for defensive linemen, so the Saints would have to list Young on the roster as an outside linebacker, which they’ve been reluctant to do before.
There are two numbers in the nineties that could appeal to Young: Nos. 91 and 97, last used by Kyle Phillips and Malcolm Roach. It’s also possible he could buy out his preferred number from Saunders or Kpassagnon, or go with something fresh altogether. It’s a curious situation, but honestly pretty low-stakes given everything else going on with this team and the world at large. We’ll keep an eye out for an update.
If it is a close game, that means we could get overtime. What that used to mean in the playoffs is that the team who scored first wins the game in the sudden death period.
Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2022 and has been updated.
You’re probably here because someone in the 2024 Super Bowl just committed an egregious pass interference penalty, as dictated by the officials. Or you’re here because the officials missed what was clearly a pass interference penalty, and everyone on social media and in your living room is arguing about what the rule actually means.
It’s the Super Bowl; would you have it any other way?
The pass interference answer applies to both offensive players and defenders, and it’s rather simple (if not always in application).
According to the NFL 2023 rulebook: “It is pass interference by either team when any act by a player more than one yard beyond the line of scrimmage significantly hinders an eligible player’s opportunity to catch the ball.”
So what are those acts that can “significantly hinder” a catch attempt? Here we go:
Acts that are pass interference include, but are not limited to:
Contact by a player who is not playing the ball that restricts the opponent’s opportunity to make the catch;
Playing through the back of an opponent in an attempt to make a play on the ball;
Grabbing an opponent’s arm(s) in such a manner that restricts his opportunity to catch a pass;
Extending an arm across the body of an opponent, thus restricting his ability to catch a pass, and regardless of whether the player committing such act is playing the ball;
Cutting off the path of an opponent by making contact with him, without playing the ball;
Hooking an opponent in an attempt to get to the ball in such a manner that it causes the opponent’s body to turn prior to the ball arriving; or
Initiating contact with an opponent by shoving or pushing off, thus creating separation.
A quick explainer to help you understand the NFL challenge rules and how many each team get per game.
Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2023 and has been updated.
For people who don’t follow the NFL closely, or even those who do, some of the rules can be a bit confusing. So in anticipation of the 2024 Super Bowl we’re going through a few of the rules to help fans get caught up and knowledgeable as they watch their favorite teams.
One rule that’s somewhat confusing is the rule that allows coaches to challenge rulings on the field. Here’s what you need to know about the rule.
Coaches are given red flags, which they can use to toss onto the field before the next snap. If the flag gets tossed, in initiates an instant replay review.
Coaches get two challenges a game.
If the coach fails the challenge, he’s docked a timeout. If he successfully challenges, timeouts remain unchanged. If the coach successfully challenges twice… he gets a third challenge. No fourth challenges ever. If a coach challenges with no timeouts, that’s illegal — and a 15-yard penalty.
There are some plays that can’t be challenged, for a couple of reasons. Some plays are automatically reviewed every time, so a coach doesn’t need to challenge them — this includes scoring plays, interceptions and a few others. Coaches also can’t challenge some judgment calls made by officials (holding, for example).
A team can’t commit a penalty before the next snap and then challenge.
ARTICLE 1. COACHES’ CHALLENGE. In each game, a team will be permitted two challenges that will initiate Instant Replay reviews. The Head Coach will initiate a challenge by throwing a red flag onto the field of play before the next legal snap or kick. Each challenge will require the use of a team timeout. If a challenge is upheld, the timeout will be restored. A challenge will only be restored if a team is successful on both of its challenges, in which case it shall be awarded a third challenge, but a fourth challenge will not be permitted under any circumstances.
A team may challenge any reviewable play identified in Article 5 below, except when the on-field ruling is:
(a) a score for either team;
(b) an interception;
(c) a fumble or backward pass that is recovered by an opponent or goes out of bounds through an opponent’s end zone; or
(d) a muffed scrimmage kick recovered by the kicking team.
A team may not challenge a reviewable play:
(a) after the two-minute warning of each half;
(b) throughout any overtime period;
(c) after committing a foul that delays the next snap; and
(d) after exhausting all of its challenges or timeouts.
If a team initiates a challenge when it is not permitted to do so, it will be charged a timeout.
Penalty: For initiating a challenge when a team has exhausted its timeouts: Loss of 15 yards.
The coin toss isn’t necessarily as simple as it sounds.
Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2023 and has been updated.
The coin toss seems like it should be the most simple part of a football game, right?
Every NFL game starts with one of these. A team calls heads or tails, and that will decide who gets to receive the football on the opening kickoff of each half of the game. Sounds easy enough.
[gambcom-standard rankid=”3011″ ]
But there’s a lot more that goes into it. It’s an essential part of how any game plays out. One wrong move from a team captain, and that squad could start slow or go into the half without the ball down a few scores. If an official mishears a player? It could throw everything off.
It’s happened before. Back in 2019 year, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott told referee Walt Anderson that the team would defer to the second half after winning the toss. But Anderson misheard him and said the Los Angeles Rams would get the ball in the first and second halves. It was eventually corrected and Prescott made sure to say “DEFER” loud and clear a week later. But still, mistakes were made.
So just to make sure we’re clear now, here are the rules for the coin toss for Super Bowl LVIII, per the NFL’s rulebook:
Not more than three minutes before the kickoff of the first half, the Referee, in the presence of both team’s captains (limit of six per team, active, inactive or honorary) shall toss a coin at the center of the field. Prior to the Referee’s toss, the call of “heads” or “tails” must be made by the captain of the visiting team, or by the captain designated by the Referee if there is no home team. Unless the winner of the toss defers his choice to the second half, he must choose one of two privileges, and the loser is given the other. The two privileges are:
The opportunity to receive the kickoff, or to kick off; or
The choice of goal his team will defend.
If the coin does not turn over in the air or the toss is compromised in any way, the Referee shall toss it again. The captain’s original call may not be changed.
Penalty: For failure to comply: Loss of coin-toss option for both halves and overtime, and loss of 15 yards from the spot of the kickoff for the first half only.
For the second half, the captain who lost the pregame toss is to have the first choice of the two privileges listed in (a) or (b), unless one of the teams lost its first and second half options, or unless the winner of the pregame toss deferred his choice to the second half, in which case he must choose (a) or (b) above. Immediately prior to the start of the second half, the captains of both teams must inform the Referee of their respective choices.
A captain’s first choice from any alternative privileges listed above is final and not subject to change.
McIlroy was 6 under thru 14 holes before the sloppy finish.
At one point Thursday, Rory McIlroy held the lead alone during the first round of the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. However, at day’s end, his score is going to be a bit worse than it could have been thanks to a penalty.
Before signing his scorecard, McIlroy was assessed a two-shot penalty for an improper drop on the par-5 seventh hole at Spyglass Hill. McIlroy’s drive was wayward on the hole, and he had to take an unplayable. Where he dropped it was determined to be illegal, so what he thought was a bogey 6 turned into a triple bogey 8.
PGA Tour rules official Mark Dusbabek joined the Golf Channel telecast and said McIlroy “totally owned the mistake” when it was brought to his attention in the scoring area.
Rory McIlroy has been assessed a two-stroke penalty after this drop on the par-5 seventh hole. pic.twitter.com/7PtnytRc5t
The rule states a ball can roll up to a club length, whereas McIlroy dropped his ball a club length to the right off the original line, which is where the penalty came from.
“So I took an unplayable on 7 and I took it back on line,” McIlroy said after his round. “Then unbeknownst to me the rule changed in January 2023 where you used to be able to come back on line, take a club length either side. That was changed in 2019 to be able to do that. I wasn’t aware that that rule was changed again in 2023, so I took a drop thinking of the 2019 rules when everything was sort of changed not knowing that the rule was changed again in 2023, so got a two-stroke penalty there.”
McIlroy was 6 under thru 14 holes, then he went bogey-triple-bogey and signed for a 1-under 71 at Spyglass Hill.
It’s his first PGA Tour start this season. The last time he teed it up, he won the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour.
Picture the scene: You’ve just been to watch a thrilling race, where any one of three drivers looked to be in with a shout of winning for much of it, and there was uncertainty about the outcome right up until the final lap. Then you’ve made your way …
Picture the scene: You’ve just been to watch a thrilling race, where any one of three drivers looked to be in with a shout of winning for much of it, and there was uncertainty about the outcome right up until the final lap.
Then you’ve made your way onto the grid, watched the podium ceremony surrounded by thousands of others, slowly walked off after a few photos, sat in traffic for a while but still made it downtown to grab some dinner while buzzing about the day you’ve had.
Suddenly you start to overhear strange comments and shouts of annoyance or unusual laughter… And then you’re pretty sure the word “disqualified” was said. You grab your phone and check online and there’s the news.
So it turns out there wasn’t uncertainty about the outcome right up until the final lap — there was uncertainty about the outcome right up until over three and a half hours after the checkered flag had been waved to call off the battle.
It just doesn’t seem right, does it?
Podium ceremonies are a big part of the fan experience at F1 races…which makes their being rendered irrelevant by subsequent revelations all the more of a buzz kill. Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
I’m sure at this point some of you are already busy typing “Do you not know motorsport?! Cars take time to go through technical checks!” And yes, they do. This is not a dig at the FIA, which cannot be expected to check everything on every car within seconds of a race finishing.
In fact, the technical brilliance that is inherent in Formula 1 is something that needs to be protected, but that doesn’t mean the time it took for the result to be changed on Sunday night can’t be looked at and learned from.
In some ways, it’s a tougher challenge than sporting penalties, because of how complex F1 machinery is and the level of detail that needs looking into during post-race scrutineering to ensure that cars are conforming with the technical regulations. But in other ways, it’s much easier.
As we evidenced by the decision that came out from the stewards on Sunday night, there is a zero-tolerance approach to technical breaches.
“The stewards note that the onus is on the competitor to ensure that the car is in compliance with the regulations at all times during an event,” the decision said. “In this particular case, the rear skid in the area defined in the Technical Delegate’s report was outside of the thresholds outlined in Article 3.5.9 e) of the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, which includes a tolerance for wear. Therefore, the standard penalty for a breach of the Technical Regulations is imposed.”
And it’s not as if Mercedes or Ferrari argued that case at all. Mercedes technical director James Allison has since admitted there is embarrassment within the team for such an error that led to it being disqualified as the rules are so clear cut.
“Of course the disqualification is a significant blow,” Allison said. “It’s a miserable feeling. It hurts and everybody here feels it. Everybody is upset, embarrassed to a degree as well because we absolutely don’t like like being on the wrong side of the rules and just lamenting the lost points.
“Austin is a track with a very bumpy surface and therefore you are a bit more vulnerable to bumping the car on the ground. We just simply didn’t take enough margin at the end of Free Practice 1. When we had done our setup we checked the plank and everything all looked fine, untouched after the FP1 running.
“But the results of the race speak for themselves. We were illegal, so clearly, we should have had our car set a little bit higher up to give ourselves a little bit more margin. It’s of course a mistake — it’s an understandable sort of mistake in a sprint weekend where it’s so much harder to get that stuff right, especially on a bumpy track. But a lesson for us in the future to make sure that we take more margin, especially at a track like that with all its bumps.”
The issue I have is that if there are aspects of a car that can be worn during a race and need to be checked in terms of tolerances, and then a certain car — or two in this week’s case — is proven to be the wrong side of the line, why does it still take so long to be decided upon?
A lesson to be learned from an organizational point of view would be to inform teams they will be called immediately during parc ferme checks to discuss what has happened. There was nearly an hour and a half between Mercedes and Ferrari being summoned and the decision to disqualify both cars being published.
In cases like this, it doesn’t need to take that long. It’s obviously not going to be as simple as the FIA dropping everything to handle that specific situation at a certain time but that’s where resource and investment continues to be required. In a week where the governing body increased the maximum fine amount to competitors in F1 to over $1 million — money that is intended for grassroots motorsport — there surely can be other revenue streams found.
The Remote Operations Center (ROC) in Geneva that was established in the aftermath of the Abu Dhabi 2021 debacle has been up and running for more than a year but doesn’t appear to have had a hugely noticeable impact so far. Perhaps those in the ROC could be tasked with hearing from a team representative as quickly as possible when an issue with a car is found, allowing post-race checks to continue uninterrupted but a decision to be made more quickly.
And perhaps more importantly, there’s got to be flexibility when issues occur. Thresholds surely should be in place for when random technical checks produce multiple infringements of the same type, as was the case at COTA.
Four cars were checked across the top four teams — those of Hamilton, Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris — and two of the four were found to be in breach of the regulations. With a 50% hit rate, checking the planks of at least one car from each team should surely become the required follow-up.
The counter argument is everything needs packing up to take to Mexico City, but then we’re in danger of seeing the desire to chase more revenue by constantly adding more races be to the detriment of the actual sporting competition itself. Maybe we’re not quite at that point yet, but that balance needs to be kept in mind.
Austin wasn’t a case of the FIA doing anything wrong — in fact, doing it right by finding discrepancies that then act as deterrents to all teams — but lessons can certainly be learned to ensure fans have a better chance of actually knowing the outcome of a race before they’ve left a track, and teams feel they’ve all been judged equally.
Here’s some quick homework for NFL Roster Cuts 101: The difference in being released vs. waived, and how it impacts practice squad formation
The annual NFL roster cuts deadline is one of the busiest 48-hour periods on pro football’s calendar, and you’ll see a lot of different terms thrown around — but what do they all mean? What is a vested veteran? What is the difference in being released and being waived? How does it all tie together in forming the New Orleans Saints practice squad? Let’s break it down.
Released vs. Waived
This is an important distinction. Players earn accrued seasons by being on a team’s roster for six or more games each year, and those with four or more accrued seasons will immediately become free agents upon being released (at least until the NFL trade deadline in November, at which point they’ll hit waivers like everyone else).
That isn’t the case for rookies, second-year pros, and most players returning from last year’s practice squad. The vast majority of players cut on Tuesday are being waived, which of course means they’re testing the waiver wire. That gives other teams an opportunity to freely claim them, though any additions require corresponding moves to open up spots on the 53-man roster.
Practice squad rules
Teams are allowed to keep 16 players on their practice squad, and those accrued seasons come back into play here. 10 of those spots are reserved for players with fewer than two accrued seasons. The other 6 slots are open to players with two or more accrued seasons — meaning veteran players. Last year the Saints had experienced pros like Kirk Merritt, J.P. Holtz, Nick Martin, and Taco Charlton on their practice squad to open the season.
Those accrued seasons matter in pay, too. Players on the practice squad with fewer than two accrued seasons are paid $12,000 each week. Those with two or more accrued seasons are paid at least $16,100, with room to negotiate up to $20,000 in their weekly game checks. That’s an important recruiting tool teams use when assembling their practice squads but it’s also a cost-cutting measure for the NFL to pinch every possible penny.
Injured reserve protocol
So this is another important point we should touch on. The NFL allows teams to activate up to eight players from injured reserve (and the same player can be designated to return twice, if needed, but they also count against that limit each time) but they must start the season on the 53-man roster in order to qualify, even if it’s only as a day. That’s why you’ll see these referred to as procedural moves.
This is also why so many media projections have the Saints keeping Tre’Quan Smith on the team at wide receiver, or Landon Young at offensive tackle, despite both players being sidelined for weeks with significant injuries. As was the case last year with Trevor Penning and Malcolm Roach, both guys would need to stay on the roster past the cuts deadline on Tuesday before being designated to injured reserve on Wednesday (that’s also the case for players who might have made the cut but are dealing with injuries, such as linebacker Ryan Connelly). Theoretically none of them would be available until Week 5’s road game with the New England Patriots, but it really depends on each player’s recovery timeline.
Teams can put as many players on injured reserve as they need to, but again, just eight of them may return to activation in a single season. A large number also puts a strain on the training staff’s resources. So you’ll see a lot of players who are hurt agree to be released with an injury settlement. That’s a payout which covers the weeks they would have been inactive. It also requires the player to finish rehab on their own. They’re also a free agent and can sign with a new team once they can pass a physical.
Right now the Saints have three players on season-ending injured reserve: Trai Turner, Andrew Dowell, and Eno Benjamin, all of whom were hurt during training camp. None of them will be eligible to play again this year even if they did heal up in time, which is really unfortunate. But the team’s medical staff will handle their recovery and they’ll still be paid the guarantees they were owed.
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Justin Thomas sought relief after he fanned his tee shot 30 yards to the right on the ninth hole at Sedgefield Country Club and it landed underneath a tree. But a PGA Tour rules official denied the request for a free drop at the Wyndham Championship on Saturday.
Thomas called for a referee to determine whether a scoreboard was in his line of sight. Out came Tour official Pete Lis, who heard his plea and concluded that from his lie behind a tree a scoreboard wasn’t on his intended line of play.
“I feel like you’re not understanding what I’m saying,” Thomas said. “I’ve had it multiple times where a grandstand is in my way and don’t get relief.”
“It’s not on your line of play right now,” Lis said. “You wouldn’t because you can’t get the ball to finish on the line with hole.”
Thomas accepted the decision and punched out from the pine straw and made one of his two bogeys in a round of 66 that lifted him into a tie for 11th as he battles to make the FedEx Cup Playoffs. It was a classic example of a player trying to use the Rules of Golf to their advantage. Thomas was wise to ask.
“You get rulings sometimes where you almost feel bad that it’s happening, and I truly felt like that was going to be one of those scenarios. It’s just weird. It was between me and the hole, and I just had situations before where stuff like that’s happened. It’s not necessarily in your way, but because it’s between you, you get relief,” he explained. “It was just because the tree was there. It was one of those things like you kind of have your tail tucked between your legs asking for relief because it would only happen in a situation like this. But at the same time, I’m always going to ask because you never know, I could have gotten a drop and would have been able to hit on the green. So worth a shot.”
One day earlier, Thomas was granted a ruling in his favor that allowed both he and Adam Scott, who was playing in the same group, to drop in the fairway rather than the rough after they drove into the water on the eighth hole.
“I think drops get abused a decent bit and we’re not those guys, but we just wanted to – we needed to make sure that it was done correctly because that’s not – that wasn’t in the nature of it, we just wanted to make sure all was OK,” he said on Friday.
