Bobby Okereke expects ‘acclimation period’ after hip-drop tackle ban

NFL owners officially voted to ban the hip-drop tackle in March, hoping to make the game safer. However, the added rule change will dramatically impact how defenders approach tackling and it won’t necessarily be an easy transition.

New York Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke expects an “acclimation period” as players attempt to learn a new way of tackling, which is contrary to how they’ve been coached in the past.

“It’s definitely another thing for us to be aware of as defenders. You know, it’s tough,” Okereke told reporters on Monday. “They tell you, run your feet on tackles so you can run through this guy.

“At the end of the day, our job is to get the guy down. You know, it’ll be an emphasis for us in training camp going forward, focusing on that. I assume it will be an acclimation period for all of us.”

Okereke agrees that player safety should be an emphasis, but admits there’s also a downside to banning the hip-drop tackle.

“It’s tough because player safety should always be the emphasis,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we all have a job to do. This is how we get paid, we feed our families. This is our livelihood.

“It’s kind of a tug-of-war between the two and just trusting the league office and everyone involved to come to the right conclusion.”

It will be interesting to see how the implementation of this new rule impacts the game and specifically, how it impacts linebackers like Okereke, who recorded 149 tackles in 2023.