Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh was dismissive of the hip-drop tackle technique when asked if there are challenges in teaching proper tackling.
The NFL decided to ban this technology during its annual meeting. There was a lot of backlash from players, but Harbaugh was in the camp that supported banning tackles.
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Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh watches during the second quarter of a game against the Miami Dolphins on Dec. 31, 2023, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. (Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
“When did you hear about the hip drop tackle, about two or three years ago? Because it was probably discovered in rugby and started being performed as a separate technique,” Harbaugh said. “This is a movement in three parts, [and] You have to execute that play. You have to get close enough to the ball carrier to actually hug him around your waist, pull him closer to you, swing your hips, and drop him behind your legs.
“When you get that close, wrap him up, tackle him, take him to the ground like Ray Lewis used to do, and everybody did 100 years before that. But you I’m talking about a tackle that the ball carrier doesn’t have; how to get out of it; he can’t get away. So it falls behind his legs and it becomes a lump… and seriously injures him. 25 times more likely to lose.
Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh speaks to the media during the NFL Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on February 27, 2024 in Indianapolis. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
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“So this was a really bad play and should have been taken out. Also, players would make tackles just fine without a hip-drop tackle. He had no problem making tackles without drop tackles. I’ve never really seen that before.”
The controversial tackle, in which a defender wraps his or her hands or arms around the ball carrier and then lowers his or her hips to pinch the opponent’s feet or legs, has become a hot topic around the league.
The tackle left numerous players injured, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell led the vote on the rule.
One of the main examples of the hip drop being used is former San Francisco 49ers safety Jimmy Ward’s tackle on then-Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard during the 2022 postseason. . Ward’s tackle caused Pollard to injure his ankle, which ultimately required surgery.
Mark Andrews, No. 89 of the Baltimore Ravens, is tackled by No. 55 Logan Wilson of the Cincinnati Bengals during the first quarter of a game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Nov. 16, 2023. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews was also the victim of a hip drop tackle this season. He suffered a serious injury against the Cincinnati Bengals and missed most of the 2023 season.
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Since then, the NFL has found 105 hip-drop tackles out of 20,000 tackles investigated since 2022, according to Pro Football Talk. They also found that tackling increased the risk of injury by 25 times the injury rate of standard tackling.
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