Flopping has become an epidemic in the NBA over the last decade, and apparently the virus is spreading.
NFL players have seemed to catch the cold this season, intentionally falling or flailing on certain plays in order to draw penalty flags, as Texans interim head coach Wade Phillips pointed out on Wednesday.
“Offensive players are flopping,” Phillips said on a conference call with the Denver media, per ESPN”s Jeff Legwold.
Phillips quickly covered his tracks, though, easing up a bit in case big brother at the league office had caught wind of it, saying “I certainly don’t want to get fined as an interim coach.”
There has been an influx of pass-interference penalties this season, as officials seem more inclined to call even slight contact than in years past. And Phillips seems to believe that diving receivers are actually forcing the hand of some officials by flopping.
The NBA imposed a fine system for such flopping on the hardwood. If it is becoming such an issue in the NFL, too, maybe it’s time for Roger Goodell and Co. to look into enforcing similar punishments.
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