While a subset of players — and the NFL Players Association — voiced their concern, Goodell told reporters that all the parties came together to study the effects of the hip-drop tackle before its banishment.
“We met with (the players’ union) and the Competition Committee back in Indianapolis,” Goodell said on Tuesday. “They came in and they expressed their view immediately. We had an opportunity to go through all of the plays from a video standpoint. We had them here from our engineers as well as ask questions of our engineers, and our committee members.”
Now, the league’s officials must get up to speed on the new rules and plan on implementation during games. But Goodell did not believe adding more to referees’ plates would be a problem during the 2024 NFL season.
“I think that we talked a great deal about this. It’s not unusual,” Goodell said. “When we had the lowering of the head (penalty added), and the head-to-head contact, there (was) a transition period. We’re going to make sure that the officials are comfortable that when they see something clear and obvious, they throw the flag.”
And if calls are missed live during games? The league office will have the officials’ backs there, too, Goodell said.
“Otherwise, we will see it on videotape,” he said on Tuesday. “We will see it on tape on Monday, and we’ll deal with fines and discipline. It’s been an effective way to do it, and it will not put all that pressure on the officials alone to get that right.”