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Report: John Madden pushing NFL to abolish defensive leaps over line

Boston Globe / Getty

Famed former head coach and color commentator John Madden is pushing for the NFL to make it illegal for defensive players to leap over the line of scrimmage on kick plays, The MMQB's Peter King reports.

Though it was the Philadelphia Eagles who officially proposed the rule change, which will be considered at the league meetings this week, the Competition Committee is also reportedly in favor of the change.

And, as the co-chair of the NFL's safety committee and chair of the coaches subcommittee, Madden remains a prominent voice on matters related to the rules.

"Why should we wait till somebody gets seriously hurt on a play like this before we do anything about it? It's got to be outlawed," Madden reportedly told the Competition Committee.

The proposed change hasn't been particularly popular with fans, many of whom enjoy the novelty of seeing a defensive player jump over the line to block a kick.

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