When the NFL owners convene for their spring meeting in Buckhead, Georgia, on Tuesday, one proposal they are expected to vote on is one that would make wearing thigh and knee pads mandatory for all players beginning in 2013, Alex Marvez of FOXSports.com reports. Marvez reported hip pads would not be mandatory.
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Players on the perimeter -- wide receivers, cornerbacks, safeties -- often play without certain pads as they feel it restricts their movement or decreases their speed. Some go without padding simply for vanity's sake.
Recent proposals made by the Competition Committee have been geared toward improving player safety, a stated goal of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and an agenda that Committee Chairman Rich McKay plans to push. It would be surprising if this proposal fell short of the 75 percent approval required for passage.
Other proposals that will be voted include items pertaining to player and roster movement, including pushing the trade deadline back two weeks and a rule change that would allow one player placed on injured reserve after the first regular season game to return to the active list during the season. These issues were discussed during the league meetings in Palm Beach, Fla., in late March, but were tabled until this week's meeting.