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Raiders' Whitehead supports new helmet rule

By The Sports Xchange
Photo courtesy of the Oakland Raiders/Twitter
Photo courtesy of the Oakland Raiders/Twitter

Oakland Raiders linebacker Tahir Whitehead said he supports the NFL's new helmet rule and doesn't think it will prevent him from being a physical player.

Several NFL players have spoken out against the new rule that prohibits lowering the helmet to initiate contact. Whitehead, however, said the rule itself is pretty clear and that it's a positive step toward player safety.

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"It's pretty much self-explanatory," the 28-year-old Whitehead told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "You don't lower your head to initiate contact. At the end of the day, it's protecting the offensive guy, but most importantly, you're protecting yourself. We've all seen what happened countless times last year where guys lower their head and risk not only injuring the guy on offense but exposing yourself to injury. It just makes sense.

"As a defensive player, you're always taught, 'You need to see what you hit.' When you're taking on a block, you don't duck your head because you're exposing yourself to neck injuries. That's always the way I've played the game, so I don't think it's necessarily going to affect the way I play personally."

The NFL released a fact sheet regarding the new helmet rule last week after several players admitted to being confused. The league implemented the new rule in late March.

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Under the new directive, it is a foul if a player lowers his head to initiate and make contact with the helmet on an opponent. The contact is not limited to an opponent's head or neck area, as initiating contact to a player's torso, hips and lower body is also an infraction.

According to the fact sheet, the penalties for a violation include a loss of 15 yards or ejection, which includes a set of standards. An ejection would be considered if a player lowers his helmet to establish a linear body posture prior to initiating and making contact with the helmet, if he has an unobstructed path to his opponent or if contact clearly is avoidable and player delivering the blow had other options.

Whitehead, who signed a three-year deal with the Raiders in March, recorded 110 tackles and one sack in 16 games with the Detroit Lions last season.

He has collected 398 tackles, four forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, four interceptions and three sacks in 93 career contests since being selected by the Lions in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

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