New NFL Rules Passed: Player Ejections, 'Chop' Blocks, Kickoffs And More

Several new rules passed this week by the NFL will add a new way players can be ejected, ban all "chop" blocks and change the placement of a touchback on kickoffs, among other things.

Next season, players will be automatically ejected if they commit two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in one game. The rule would have only come into effect once last year, according to the NFL Network's Jeff Darlington, when Tennessee's Brian Orakpo got two unsportsmanlike calls against the New Orleans Saints.

Another rule will mirror a change made four years ago in the college game. A touchback — when the ball is kicked out of the end zone or downed after a kickoff — will now bring the ball out to the 25-yard line instead of the 20.

Those two rules are considered one-year experiments and could become permanent next offseason, according to NFL.com.

A permanent rule passed will make "chop" blocks illegal, drawing praise from defensive players but ire from the offensive side of the ball.

Chop blocks are a strategy where one offensive linemen blocks a defender high and a second lineman hits him on the thigh or lower.

"The best way to get a DT to not hold us on double teams, is a chop block," former New York Giants offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz tweeted. "Now there's nothing to stop them. Fun times."

Here were some other permanent rules passed by the NFL:

• Offensive and defensive coaches will be able to use headsets whether they are on the field or in a booth.
• A "horse collar" tackle now includes the nameplate and above on a player's jersey in addition to the collar.
• A team will be flagged for delay of game if they try to call a timeout when they aren't allowed to.
• If a receiver touches a pass after running out of bounds and coming back in bounds, it will be a loss of down instead of a five-yard penalty.