Bear Digest

How George McCaskey should vote on tush push and other rule changes

Analysis: Several rule changes proposed, like eliminating the tush push, are on the docket for this week's owners meetings and the Bears owner needs to take this route if he's smart.
Gene Chamberlain|
Jalen Hurts does quite a good job of running the ball on his own without being pushed from behind by teammates.
Jalen Hurts does quite a good job of running the ball on his own without being pushed from behind by teammates. | Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

One of the functions of the McCaskey family over the years has been involvement in voting for rule changes at league meetings.

It's the owner's duty.

George McCaskey gets to vote on proposed league rule changes at owners meetings this week a few rules that could greatly influence the Bears greatly on the field.

In fact, one proposed rule change should go through from the Bears' standpoint because they have the ability to take advantage of it better than numerous other teams in the league.

Yes to touchback change

The Bears need to vote for the proposed kick return rule change which puts touchbacks at the 35-yard line instead of the 30.

The intended result of this move would be to increase the number of kickoffs. Their rule change to an XFL kickoff style last year increased kick returns but only by 11% but those extra 5 yards could really bump it up.

The Bears should want kick returns. They have a special teams coordinator in Richard Hightower who not only helped write the rule change to the XFL style kick, but now they have a player regarded as one of the game's best at kick returns even if he struggled last year.

Devin Duvernay did have trouble last year with injuries and with a bad team and poor return blocking after being with Baltimore for years, a place where special teams will always have a place of importance. The Bears have always treated special teams like the Ravens do.

Duvernay was All-Pro with regular kick return numbers, 64 through his first three years. He had only 23 returns total for his last two years and it helped result in his ineffectiveness.

The competition committee estimates the return rate could go up dramatically to 50% or more of kickoffs.

More returns with fewer touchbacks, more Duvernay returns and more big plays for the Bears.

No to playoff seed change

The Lions proposed this change and it's one the Minnesota Vikings would, no doubt, support after last season.

The rule change would guarantee all playoff game home fields are made according to seed based on record and division titles would not enter into it.

Last year all three NFC wild card teams had better records than the division champion Rams and Buccaneers but the Rams and Buccaneers got to stay at home for the playoffs. The Vikings lost at L.A. despite 14 regular-season wins.

The Bears should vote against this partly because the Vikings and Lions would want it, just for spite.

Sure, at some point in the future this type of rule can impact the Bears. Maybe they want the chance as wild cards to host games.

This isn't the point at all.

Division races and rivalries mean something in the NFL. Over the years, the NBA, NHL and even Major League Baseball have lost something by cheapening the value of winning a regular-season division title. The reward for winning the division should be a higher seed no matter what the record is, and a home field in the wild-card round.

Start taking down the importance of divisions and soon where does it stop? Bears-Packers becomes like a Seahawks-Jaguars game eventually. There's no specific reason to follow it other than someone once said it was important.

Keep division titles sacred. Tradition should mean something.

If teams like the Vikings want to get a home game, win the last regular-season game over the Lions.

Ban the "tush bush"

Of course this needs to be outlawed and in the end it has nothing at all to do with the Eagles or even the fact the Packers proposed this change, although that alone would be a good reason for the Bears to vote on the side of the Eagles.

The tush push is a boring, uninteresting play that is also both dangerous to execute and to try and stop.

This is a modern day version of the flying wedge. They banned that play back in the early 1900s because of its danger and unfair advantage given to the team using it. It's like a rugby play and this is football, a much more beautiful, athletic sport.

The same situation applies here.

The league has been very fortunate so far that some quarterback hasn't had his back injured by being shoved from behind at the same time he's being hit from the front, or that some lineman isn't trampled to the point of suffering severe back damage. It's a matter of time.

Why should a quarterback, or any other runner, be pushed by someone on his own team, anyway? That's not a football play. A football play is blocking the other guys trying to tackle him. Do that instead. That's what they teach football players from the beginning of youth football.

They can still run quarterback sneaks without the tush push. They just need to do it the correct way and the QB needs to run on his own behind blocks.

The rule needs to be equated to the unfair advantage rules they instituted on field goals that prohibit the rushing team from contacting the long snapper, or to use unfair leaps to gain advantages. It's all the same thing.

Block the defense, not your own guy from behind. 

A league in total love with offense needs to throw a bone to the defense here because this offensive play does nothing to enhance the watchability of NFL games. Ultimately, it might help an offense keep the ball and score more points but it is boring in and of itself. 

It's like watching an NBA game back when they had 2-to-make-3 at the foul line. No one wants that. It's boring. More plays like this and people will start tuning out.

It's like watching intentional walks when they make the pitcher actually throw the pitch.

It's like watching NFL extra points being kicked from the 10-yard line with the goal post on the goal line like they were before 1974. Bor-ing. The play is regressive. Get rid of it.

Don't pity the poor Eagles, though.

Their offensive line is actually good enough to survive by blocking instead of by gaming the system. They'll be just fine by letting Jalen Hurts sneak the ball on his own.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.