Patriots Matthew Slater says NFL kickoff rule change not truly in the name of player health and safety

Patriots Matthew Slater says NFL kickoff rule change not truly in the name of player health and safety

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special teamer has been on the field for quite a few kickoffs, as he enters his 16th year in the NFL, and feels strongly about recent changes made to his area of the game. Last week, a league rule was changed to allow fair catches on kickoffs for the upcoming season. A fair catch on a kickoff anywhere inside a team's own 25-yard line will result in a touchback with the ball placed at the 25.The league says the goal of the change is to increase player health and safety, attempting to le sen the number of collisions that occur on kickoffs. Slater, however, is not buying into the reasoning, saying this area is not the top cause Neal Broten Women Jersey for concu sions and therefore should not be the focus of change."I just don't believe this is truly in the name of player health and safety. What I do believe is, 'We the want to portray ourselves a certain way to the public that says we care about the players,'" Slater said (via ).Slater pointed out there are other areas the league could improve safety and health. He mentioned "Thursday Night Football," synthetic turf over natural gra s and health care and disability benefits as examples. "But I Erik Condra Women Jersey can give you a long list of examples where the league and powers that be do not act in the best interest of the players," Slater said. "I understand we want to reduce head injuries and things of that nature, but we don't always act as if player health and safety is paramount," Slater said. "If we're really concerned with player safety and health, let's talk about some of the real i sues. Let's not talk about a play, when a high percentage of the time the ball is kicked off, it's injury-free."Slater is a 10-time Pro Bowler and known as one of the best special team players in the league right now and up there will all-timers. He acknowledged that some people may not realize the gravity of the rule change.The 37-year-old said he knows "that people will look at this and say, 'What's the big deal?'" "For a player like myself, I wouldn't have had a career most likely without this play," Slater said. "I also understand the players that came before me -- the Steve Taskers, the Bill Bateses -- who were able to establish themselves and have careers in this league because of the kicking game."Slater is far from the only person to criticize the rule change. head coach Andy Reid and John Harbaugh were both outspoken against it, , "Where does it stop?"The Patriots were one of the teams to vote against the rule change.Commi sioner Roger Goodell addre sed the disparity acro s the , saying not everyone will agree on everything. "We have different viewpoints in the league. This is not the first time," Goodell said. "The data is very clear about the higher rate of injury on that play. We've been talking about it for several years. We have not made a lot of progre s on this play. There will be more work to be done about how we continue to evolve going forward: Can we continue to keep this play in an exciting way, but more importantly, a safe way?"The Patriots captain believes the NFL is using the statistics as an excuse to get rid of the play."We Gemel Smith Kids Jersey all know data can be skewed and projected in any way you want to slice it up," Slater said. "It's clear to me that they're making an effort to eradicate this play."
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