Bill Belichick Not Concerned With NFL's New Helmet Rule
BOSTON (CBS) -- Nobody really knows what to make of the NFL's new rule which prohibits players from using their helmet to initiate contact. When it was announced this offseason, it promised harsh 15-yard penalties and occasional ejections would result in any violations. This week, the Philadelphia Eagles expressed great confusion over the matter, and the referees presenting the information could not agree whether or not Malcolm Jenkins' hit on Brandin Cooks in Super Bowl LII was legal or illegal under the new rules. Clearly, the matter still does not appear to be settled.
But Bill Belichick is not all that concerned about it. At least not publicly.
The Patriots' head coach was asked if he and his staff have gone through the coaching points to help players understand what is and is not legal under the new rules.
"We always have coached fundamentals and proper techniques as we believe in them, and as we're instructed with the rules," Belichick said. "So that's always a part of it."
A follow-up question focused on the confusion league-wide about the new rules, and whether the Patriots shared in that lack of full understanding.
"We know what we know. We'll see how it goes," he said.
Belichick confirmed that the league had come through Foxboro to present the team with the new rules, but when asked if he knew how the new rules would affect linemen, Belichick offered the same answer as before.
"We know what we know. We'll see how it goes," he said. "Think you'd have to talk to Al [Riveron] and people in the officiating department about that."
An NFL coach since 1975 and a head coach for 24 years, Belichick has coached through a number of rule changes, and he knows that there's no use in hitting any panic buttons in the middle of the summer. Plus, there's no NFL coach who knows the rules better than Bill. The new rule may not make a ton of sense to too many people at the moment, but Belichick is clearly intent on doing his coaching behind the scenes while waiting to see how things play out before he offers any public commentary on the matter.