I’d like to see the “In the grasp” rule enforced again.
The Referee must blow the play dead as soon as the passer is clearly in the grasp and control of any tackler behind the line, and the passer’s safety is in jeopardy.
This rule seems to have been forgotten ever since a call involving Dak Prescott was blown a few years ago when Dak had been wrapped up by his own teammate.
Numerous times over the past 2-3 years I’ve seen the quarterback firmly in the grasp of the defender, who’s clearly waiting for the whistle to blow and not trying to face-plant the quarterback. The quarterback manages to break free and turns a potential sack into a big gain. Often demoralizing the defense.
This no-call benefits guys like Lamar, Mahomes, Allen and Fields the most. I’m not talking about a QB that extends the play by slipping or dodging an attempt where a defender gets a hand on a shoulder pad and they spin out or pull away from it. I’m talking about both hands around the waist and the QB is stumbling to keep from going down and isn’t running forward, then suddenly breaks free.
It would also help prevent what happens to a player like Tua, that ended up concussed after the defender threw him down. On at least one of those he was in the grasp and either should have gone down or had the whistle blown. Josh Allen had a nearly identical situation to Tua’s but managed to break free and gain 20 yards on a 3rd and 18 play that should have been called a sack. The only difference is Josh is 4 inches taller and 25 lbs heavier and the defender for whatever reason didn’t face plant him.
TLDR: If the defender is afraid of a roughing the passer penalty, then the QB shouldn’t benefit from that. The whistle should end the play when the QB is in the grasp.