Today, the National Football Foundation released 14 new rule changes which are in effect for the 2025 season.
Early on in the article, before the rules were touted, this excerpt was posted.
“The mission of the Rules Committee is to develop and evaluate rules changes that will enhance the sport, protect the image of the game, and enhance the student athlete’s health and safety,” said Shaw. “Player safety has been the highest priority of the committee for many years now resulting in significant changes that have improved the game in terms of mitigating injuries.”
The first rule is one of the most interesting things to have been recently propped up over the last couple of years, with players faking injuries
“Feigning Injuries: To combat the practice of feigning injuries, the rules committee passed a rule that if a player presents as injured after the ball is spotted by officials, that team will be charged a Team Timeout or a delay penalty if all timeouts have been used. That player must remain out of the game for at least one down, even if that team is granted a team timeout and may not return to the game until receiving approval of professional medical personnel designated by their institution.”
As we move down the list, there are back-to-back changes that have to do with actions during the heat of the game.
“Team Pre-Snap Movement: Any defensive team player within one yard of the line of scrimmage (stationary or not) may not make quick and abrupt or exaggerated actions that simulate action at the snap and are not part of normal defensive player movement in an obvious attempt to make the offense foul. This will continue as a point of emphasis in the game. The offense will be held to the same standard as any pre-snap movement that simulates action at the snap is a foul on the offense for a false start.”
“Disconcerting Signals: No player shall use words or signals that disconcert opponents when they are preparing to put the ball in play. No player may call defensive signals that simulate the sound or cadence of, or otherwise interfere with, offensive starting signals. New for 2025, the terms “move” and “stem” are reserved for defensive cadence and may not be used by the offense. The offense may use a “clap” as a starting signal and this signal may not be used by the defense.”
As the list goes on, the rules get more and more technical, so we won’t comb over all the rules, but the full list and extended descriptions can be found on the hyperlink above.
