Bad news for fans of football catches that seem physically impossible: They probably are.
The NFL has been examining the effectiveness of the flypaper gloves used by players, and it hopes to create a new stickiness standard.
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“The challenge is the tackiness, and the gloves now are so tacky that it’s taking away from the true skill level,” NFL executive VP of football operations Troy Vincent told Pro Football Talk last week. “So we have been working with our manufactures and partners in trying to create a standard in all protective equipment and in particular the gloves.
“So that frankly is a work in progress because there is no standards in the industry and it appears that we have to create one.”
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Not to take anything away from the likes of Odell Beckham Jr., but Vincent is right. The Los Angeles Times last year used the Giants receiver’s signature snag — you know the one — as a primary example of the perceived issue.
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“Pretty soon, these gloves are going to be able to catch a ball without a hand in them,” legendary NFL coach and broadcaster John Madden told The Times.
Echoed Hall of Fame receiver Tim Brown: “You can’t make that play without those kind of gloves. It’s just impossible. (Beckham is) a freak of nature, no doubt about it. But those gloves are so ‘tackified’ these days that that’s part of the reason you see guys making those kinds of catches.”
Vincent told PFT that the league’s review has been “ongoing for the last 18 months,” and it hopes to have new standards set in time for the 2017 season.
But the NFL’s motive in regulating glove tackiness is fair to question. One would think the league, focused in the entertainment industry and always trying to create a more sellable product, would welcome grabs that defy human ability.
What’s the problem with a piece of equipment — like a lighter jersey, stealthier cleats or more compact padding — developed to improve a player’s ability to perform? Nobody’s safety is being compromised here.
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The issue, in part, is that receivers aren’t the only players utilizing the advantages.
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“You know something’s up when guys like Tom Brady and Kurt Warner and Peyton Manning are wearing gloves to throw a football,” former NFL quarterback Rich Gannon told The Times. “You’re starting to go, ‘Wait a second here…’ Guys for years dreaded bad weather, cold weather, and they didn’t want to have anything that would take their hands off the football. Now guys are like, ‘These gloves are better than the human skin.'”
The gloves being better than human skin, though, is the whole idea.
Whether stickier gloves help or harm the game is subjective. Perhaps the NFL is listening to cries of former players who were not awarded such advantages.
For now, the league is interested in at least putting a cap on the issue before it, you know, gets out of hand.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: HOW
