The crown of the helmet rule has been the most talked about change for safety's sake in the NFL this season. The rule prohibits the ball carrier or tackler from lowering his head and using the crown of his helmet to ward off an opponent, It had yet to be flagged before or after games through four weeks of preseason play and one week of the regular season.
That is until this week. ProFootballTalk reported Friday that Tennessee Titans running back Jackie Battle was penalized by the new rule. He has been fined $21,000 by the NFL for lowering his head into Houston Texans defensive back Danieal Manning last Sunday.
Battle did not receive a penalty during the game. The violation was discovered during a league review.
