I know this is in vogue, and I am going to be chastised for these opinions, but I am extremely concerned with this style of tackling as a way to increase safety. It is my concern, that if we adopt this style of tackling as the way for safer tackles, we will have an increase in neck/spinal cord injuries. An older coach told me there were a ridiculous number of neck injuries in the 70's and 80's because of the way they taught the shoulder/butt tackle. This is just reverting back to that way of thinking. This is being adopted by High Schools and JFL programs across the state, and in my humble opinion, this is extremely dangerous for our younger kids playing this game. When bending to shoulder tackle as demonstrated, MOST High School and younger players drop their heads. I would argue that this occurrence is due to strength level, and part of that is due to flexibility. In the NFL, and to a certain extent the college game, those coaches have great athletes, with good flexibility, and neck/back/hip strength. Those that don't have those things are trained year round to improve in those areas. At the High School and levels younger, we are not always afforded those opportunities. While I know the argument is to train it, and make them proficient, I know this is not always possible for ALL of the athletes that step on the field or in our drills. Some players are limited physically, some are limited structurally, and some just don't learn as kinesthetically quick as others. I understand this method for the NFL and College, and there push to implement. However, I am extremely frustrated with the discussion surrounding this method of tackling. I know many coaches across the country who are adopting it, and I just want you to consider the cons.
It is always valid to consider the possible negatives of any technique being taught. The two major selling points of this method of tackling to me.
#1 Coaching players to take their head out of the tackle. Concussions/the fear of concussions is the #1 threat to football moving forward.
#2 The techniques can be practiced with or without pads. Whatever tackling technique you elect to teach, the players need reps to become proficient. We are facing more and more challenges to teaching tackling. The NCAA and HS associations are passing rules to limit contact in practice. Teams are running more plays per game which forces coaches to cut back on contact in practice. We have been doing non-padded tackling for a while. The more we can do the better. It is the only way for us to get meaningful reps to improve our tackling without beating our players up.
My hope is that football coaches continue to learn, debate, and innovate to make the game safer and grow the game. Thanks for the comments.
I know this is in vogue, and I am going to be chastised for these opinions, but I am extremely concerned with this style of tackling as a way to increase safety. It is my concern, that if we adopt this style of tackling as the way for safer tackles, we will have an increase in neck/spinal cord injuries. An older coach told me there were a ridiculous number of neck injuries in the 70's and 80's because of the way they taught the shoulder/butt tackle. This is just reverting back to that way of thinking. This is being adopted by High Schools and JFL programs across the state, and in my humble opinion, this is extremely dangerous for our younger kids playing this game. When bending to shoulder tackle as demonstrated, MOST High School and younger players drop their heads. I would argue that this occurrence is due to strength level, and part of that is due to flexibility. In the NFL, and to a certain extent the college game, those coaches have great athletes, with good flexibility, and neck/back/hip strength. Those that don't have those things are trained year round to improve in those areas. At the High School and levels younger, we are not always afforded those opportunities. While I know the argument is to train it, and make them proficient, I know this is not always possible for ALL of the athletes that step on the field or in our drills. Some players are limited physically, some are limited structurally, and some just don't learn as kinesthetically quick as others. I understand this method for the NFL and College, and there push to implement. However, I am extremely frustrated with the discussion surrounding this method of tackling. I know many coaches across the country who are adopting it, and I just want you to consider the cons.
ReplyDeleteIt is always valid to consider the possible negatives of any technique being taught. The two major selling points of this method of tackling to me.
Delete#1 Coaching players to take their head out of the tackle. Concussions/the fear of concussions is the #1 threat to football moving forward.
#2 The techniques can be practiced with or without pads. Whatever tackling technique you elect to teach, the players need reps to become proficient. We are facing more and more challenges to teaching tackling. The NCAA and HS associations are passing rules to limit contact in practice. Teams are running more plays per game which forces coaches to cut back on contact in practice. We have been doing non-padded tackling for a while. The more we can do the better. It is the only way for us to get meaningful reps to improve our tackling without beating our players up.
My hope is that football coaches continue to learn, debate, and innovate to make the game safer and grow the game. Thanks for the comments.