I was reading a profile of Packers' fullback Howie Ferguson and it mentioned he (and other runners) were not down until they were really down. What did a defender need to do to ensure an offensive player was in fact down and the play was finished?
Thank you.
Nick
Forward Progress / Tackling in the Early 1950s
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Halas Hall
- Posts: 240
- Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:00 pm
Re: Forward Progress / Tackling in the Early 1950s
He had to be held in the grasp. If contact was made and the ball carrier fell without being in the grasp, he could get up and continue.
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RichardBak
- Posts: 934
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Re: Forward Progress / Tackling in the Early 1950s
Until 1955, a runner was not considered down and the play over until his forward progress was completely stopped. This meant a ball carrier could be knocked off his feet, but as long as he wasn't firmly in the grasp of a defender, he could bounce up or wiggle free and continue his run. This led to piling on and a lot of cheap shots.
"During the 1950s," Art Donovan said in his book Fatso, "you used to see guys clawing for that extra yard with tacklers sitting on top of them trying to smash in their skull." In college, a runner was considered down by contact once his knee touched the ground.
NFL owners enacted the rule change after Hugh McElhenny, one of the league's most marketable stars, suffered a season-ending injury in such a pileup in a 1954 game. Starting in 1955, the rule was: "If a player touches the ground with any part of his body, except his hands or feet, while in the grasp of an opponent and irrespective of the grasp being broken, the ball is declared dead immediately."
"During the 1950s," Art Donovan said in his book Fatso, "you used to see guys clawing for that extra yard with tacklers sitting on top of them trying to smash in their skull." In college, a runner was considered down by contact once his knee touched the ground.
NFL owners enacted the rule change after Hugh McElhenny, one of the league's most marketable stars, suffered a season-ending injury in such a pileup in a 1954 game. Starting in 1955, the rule was: "If a player touches the ground with any part of his body, except his hands or feet, while in the grasp of an opponent and irrespective of the grasp being broken, the ball is declared dead immediately."