The OFFICIAL History of NFL Rules!

hey football fans did you know there are 19 rules 116 sections and 343 articles in the NFL rulebook the game of football can be real complex so sit back we're taking you through the evolution of NFL rules we begin in the 1920s the league known as the a PFA later changed to the NFL was founded in 1920 and based its original set of rules on the college game the league would simply go along with rule changes made by the intercollegiate rules committee jump ahead to the final game of the 1932 season the Portsmouth Spartans faced the Chicago Bears in a game that would decide the NFL championship Bears fullback Bronco Nagurski carried the ball toward the line of scrimmage only to stop and complete a jump pass for the game's decisive touchdown now at that point a player had to be at least 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage when he threw a pass the Spartans argued the controversial ruling to no avail as a result the league appointed its own Rules Committee in 1932 tasked with modifying college rules that would create a more fan friendly NFL product the game would open up drastically the following season a forward pass became legal from anywhere behind the line of scrimmage cold posts were moved from the end line to the goal line making field goal attempts easier before 1933 when the ball was dead near the sidelines it was next put in play at the dead ball spot but starting in the 33 season the ball would be put in play at the hashmarks 10 yards from each side line giving offenses more space to operate in 1934 the league removed penalties for multiple incomplete passes in a series of downs yes that was penalized four years later rules for roughing the passer were modified providing more protection for the league's first prolific passers like Sid Luckman and Sammy Baugh every time he throws the football completes the pass gains a yard scores a touchdown bah that's the world record major changes to the NFL rulebook over the next three decades were created in large part to make the game safer and more fan friendly in 1943 helmets became mandatory in 1945 hash marks were moved 20 yards from the sidelines did you know an incomplete pass behind the goal line used to be ruled a safety it did this Sammy Baugh passed in the 1945 NFL championship game struck the crossbar falling incomplete and resulting in the game deciding two points safety the rule was changed the following season so that it was merely an incomplete pass and loss of down in 1948 plastic helmets were prohibited tees were allowed on kickoffs and referees were given whistles instead of horns yes they used to have horns in 1949 the league passed a rule permitting unlimited substitutions whenever the ball was dead football would become a game of offensive and defensive specialists as rosters expanded over the next several decades fast forward to 1955 a rule change declared the ball dead immediately when a ball carrier touched the ground with any part of his body except his hands or feet while in the grasp of an opponent Auto suffered a deep facial wound on this play one that required 15 stitches to close this hit on bottle Graham knocked him out of a 1953 game against the 49ers Cleveland coach Paul Brown needed a solution after 15 stitches the team would piece together a clear plastic bar protecting Graham's face in the second half Graham led the Browns to victory and by 1955 most of the league was wearing face masks the NFL outlawed the grabbing or pulling of a face mask of any player except the runner in 1956 the exception for the runner was in 1962 split right 24 let's get this thing rollin this looked like a mechanism Brown was so far ahead of his time than in 56 he experimented with a radio receiver inside his quarterbacks helmets Brownwood Colin plays using a transmitter on his own silent now was it perfect no not exactly Browns quarterbacks would often hear taxi dispatchers and police scanners in the huddle Cleveland would use this method in just four games before NFL Commissioner Bert Bell banned all helmet radio communication it wasn't until 1994 when the ban was lifted and it became legal to call plays using a radio inside a players helmet it's a new innovation this season they're radioed in to the quarterbacks with special radio receivers in the quarterback helmets in 1968 Commissioner Pete Rozelle created the league's first competition committee which continues to help maintain balance and consistency today it replaced the Rules Committee started in 1932 and would be in charge of all competitive aspects of the game including rules all committee members are selected by the NFL Commissioner to be adopted a new rule or a revision must have the support of 75% of the NFL's owners let's skip to the 1970s and 72 the league move hashmarks to their present-day location exactly in line with each goalpost the goal was to help offenses by widening the short side of the field where defenses used the sidelines as an extra defender the rule change in 72 doubled the number of thousand yard rushers route five to ten while the bruising Smash Mouth style of play was effective for teams like the undefeated 72 dolphins overall impact was not with the NFL desired and in turn the league made sweeping rule changes appeared again toward opening up the passing game question for you have you ever heard of Isaac Curtis in 1973 the Bengals rookie receiver made an immediate impact as a big play threat with five touchdowns of 50-plus yards as a result Dolphins coach Don Shula developed a special game plan for Curtis in the 73 playoffs that game plan smother him at all costs Miami's defensive backs bumped and disrupted the speedy receiver on their way to a 34 16 win the controversy persuaded the Rules Committee to institute the Issac Curtis rule in 1974 it allowed a defensive player to make contact with the receiver only once after three yards from the line of scrimmage Miller who staged on high the Sammy white no-good a flag on evidently and appearing with chamois white that's not all for 1974 the goalposts were moved back from the goal line to the end line where they've stayed ever since we also saw kickoffs move from the 40 to the 35 yard line and sudden-death overtime was introduced for all regular-season games by 1977 the league banned the head slap a move made famous by Hall of Fame defensive end Deacon Jones offensive linemen were also prohibited from thrusting their hands to an opponent's neck face or head and now it's one of the most influential rules in NFL history the Mel Blount and he winds up in pros intercepted by blood at the 20 Steelers all-pro cornerback Mel Blount was so dominant at jamming wide receivers that the league had to change its rules beginning in 1978 defenders could only make contact with receivers to the point of 5 yards beyond the line of scrimmage the rule opened up the passing game considerably passing yards went up from 140 1.9 yards per game in 1977 all the way up to 204 point 4 yards per game by 1981 san diego's air Coryell pass attack and bill Walsh's West Coast offense revolutionized the game and the 49ers brought four Super Bowl trophies to San Francisco but back to 1978 [Applause] caspere's recovered in the end zone the open rate is explored on the most Jeanne unbelievable absolutely impossible dream of a plane the Holy Roller the chaotic and controversial sequence caused a ruling that stated if an offensive player fumbles on fourth down or anytime after the two-minute warning only the fumbling player can recover and advance the ball in 1980 under the ruling of personal foul players were prohibited from directly striking swinging or clubbing on the head neck or face a year later the NFL banned the use of stickum jump ahead to 1986 where for the first time ever owners adopted the use of instant replay [Applause] what [Music] he was over-the-line so they were reviewing the tape right now this is the first on average from 1986 to 1991 officials would review 2.2 plays per game with just 12 point 6 percent of those plays being overturned by 1992 owners voted against replay deciding that replays delayed games and failed to get enough calls correct two years later in 1994 kickoffs were moved from the 35 to the 30 yard line and the two-point conversion was adopted 34 years after the AFL introduced the idea this is the last couple years have sort of disappeared the fake and the two-point conversion the first of the season for the ground by 1995 helmet-to-helmet contact on a defenseless player was penalized and subject to find a year later it became illegal to remove your helmet while on the field [Applause] down plane through his helmet while the play was going on that's a defensive penalty seven seasons after it left the game instant replay returned with a challenge system in 1999 coaches were allowed two challenges per half with a timeout charge for any unsuccessful challenge a replay assistant would initiate all reviews inside two minutes of each half the following season all team touchdown celebrations were outlawed limiting them to just one play safe to say the LEAs wide receivers made the most of them pretty funny alright I'll level with you if you are a Raider fan now would be a good time to look away because we got to talk about the Tuck rule that's the football it's on the ground covered by the Raiders Brady's arm was in motion no doubt his arm is going forward the cornerbacks arm was going forward love it hate it this was the rule when an offensive player is holding the ball to pass it forward any intentional forward movement of his arm starts a forward pass even if the player loses possession of the ball as he is attempting to tuck it back toward his body and thus the Pats would go on to win the game launching a two-decade dynasty alive and well today in 2013 owners voted 29 to 1 to abolish the Tuck rule staying in New England due in large part to Bill Belichick stifling defense at Peyton Manning in the 2003 AFC Championship game the league made it a priority to reinforce illegal contact beginning in 2004 the rule would be enforced more aggressively clearing the skies for NFL passers protection stays any frost [Applause] a year later the horse-collar tackle was eliminated forbidding defenders from grabbing a ball carrier from inside the shoulder pads in the 2010 playoffs the league installed a modified sudden-death overtime system to help determine a winner in a tie game two years later the league expanded those rules to cover all regular-season games the current rules give both teams the opportunity to possess the ball at least once an overtime unless the team that receives the overtime kickoff scores a touchdown on its first possession second a goal to go from the to toss sweep right for James White tucks it under the right arm cuts it upfield driving forward diving to the goal line touchdown and a turtle for the Patriots rewind back to 2011 rather than a coach's challenge the replay official would now review all scoring plays that same season kickoffs were moved from the 30 back to the 35 yard line beginning in 2013 the NFL also penalized runners and tacklers for initiating forcible contact with the crown of the helmet outside the tackle box and in an effort to add extra drama to each game owners voted to move extra points back to the 15-yard line for the 2015 season here we go give Seattle the lead [Music] [Applause] in 2017 the league approves shortening overtime in the regular season to ten minutes from 15 also the ball would be placed at the 25 rather than a 20 yard line following a touchback and guess what else returned team celebrations here we go little game of hide-and-seek I gotta give this for major style points is baseball postseason evil season looking good and a potato sack race in 2018 we saw new rules on the process of a catch after nearly a decade of controversial rulings involving Calvin Johnson Dez Bryant and Jesse James the league released these three requirements for a legal catch here we go number one secure control of the ball prior to the ball touching the ground number two touch the ground inbounds with both feet or with any part of the body other than the hands and number three you know it you love it perform a football act or maintain control of the ball long enough to do something the NFL again took steps in player safety in 2018 when it became illegal for a player to lower his head and initiate contact with the helmet and in 2019 who saw the experiment of using instant replay to review pass interference and there you have it you are schooled on all the rules 100 years of them now you go enjoy that next century of the NFL [Music]

Channel: NFL Throwback

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Keywords: nfl, american football, nfl history, nfl highlights, nfl vault, nfl throwback, how every team got it's name, nfl explained, history of nfl rules, nfl rules, history of rules, every nfl rule, evolution of the nfl, mel blount rule, pass interference, how a touchdown came up, history of super bowl name

Id: ztSiem1XU54

Length: 16min 25sec (985 seconds)

Published: Wed Oct 23 2019