Miller, the league’s executive vice president overseeing player health and safety, and NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills have cited several reasons for the drop-off, including safer equipment, enforcement of safety rules and broader efforts to foster a culture of safety regarding concussions.
Some of the league’s offseason priorities include player health and safety and conversations about potential new rules, including reviewing kickoffs following a one-year experiment with dynamic changes.
“But also we need to enforce some of the rules around head contact, which our friends on the officiating side are doing a better and better job of, and eliminating more unnecessary or avoidable head contact is going to make players safer.”.
Hits on a defenseless player, tripping, the fair catch, an illegal batted ball, an illegal double-team block, illegal formations on kickoffs and taunting are other areas that warrant consideration for replay assist.
NFL executive Troy Vincent said in December that expanding replay assist to include facemask penalties and other plays is going to be considered.
