Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Graham
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Sorry for the sporadic posts so far today, but this afternoon I held my maiden SportsNation chat, which lasted 130 minutes. That's right. You read it correctly. I stick around. Be sure to jump in there next time.
In between practices, three NFL officials briefed the Patriots media on new rules and points of emphasis for 2008.
The league sends a crew to every camp to work practices and provide on-field insight to the players and coaches. They also take time to educate reporters at each stop.
The rule changes (forceout rule eliminated, no more 5-yard facemasks, defensive player can have helmet intercom, reviewable field goals, et al) were adopted in April at the NFL's annual meetings in Palm Beach, Fla.
My favorite point of emphasis? The NFL has asked officials to crack down on are violations of "mutual respect." This includes taunting, gestures, choreographed celebrations and general on-field goonery.
"If you just monitor the game with the demonstrations, physical activity and showmanship, I didn't see as much of that when I first got in the league," said umpire Butch Hannah, a 10-year veteran. "That has carried to a level where the league decided it had to do something about it."
Officials threw 38 flags for unsportsmanlike conduct last year, an average of .15 a game. That was way down from 56 a year earlier and way off the two-decade high of 89 in 1990.
The impetus of the edict apparently has more to do with the wanton nature of some incidents rather than the frequency. Taunting fouls decreased last year, but the total amount of the fines went up, reflecting the gratuitousness.
"I think it was just a few players that created the emphasis on it," Hannah said. "That is my reaction to it."
