At the NFL Annual Meeting, team owners decided on approving new rules and changes for the 2016 season. The headlining change is the elimination of all ‘chop blocks’, which occurs when one offensive player blocks a defensive player low, while another offensive player blocks the defensive player high. Although many defensive linemen were ecstatic about the news, the rule will force OCs to change their strategies for the upcoming season. The other rule changes agreed upon were:
- Permanently leave the extra points at the 15 yard line.
- Offensive and defensive play-callers are able to use the headset communication system whether they are on the field or in the booth.
- A horse-caller tackle has been expanded to included the area “at the nameplate and above.”
- A team will be flagged for delay of game if they attempt to call a timeout when they are not allowed to.
- The NFL has eliminated the five yard penalty for “an eligible receiver illegally touching a forward pass after being out of bounds and re-establishing himself inbounds, and makes it a loss of down.”
- The NFL has eliminated “multiple spots of enforcement for a double foul after a change of possession.”
