Former Pittsburgh Steelers CB Mel Blount was so dominant that the NFL had to change the way he played with the implementation of the Mel Blount Rule. Blount was a guest on the now-former Cook And Joe Show on 93.7 The Fan earlier this week and broke down the play that got the rule implemented.
“We played a game in 1977 against the Bengals in Pittsburgh and Bob Trumpy who was the tight end for the Cincinnati Bengals, just came out into the flat so Ken [Anderson] throws this ball, I react to the ball and really unintentionally broke his jaw. I mean, we collided and unfortunately, he got hurt. And then a play later Isaac Curtis was trying to get off the line of scrimmage and he couldn’t get off, so I was jamming him.”
Blount said Bengals owner Paul Brown was on the Competition Committee, and the league made Art Rooney have Blount fly to the league office to watch back the plays. Blount said he wouldn’t change his play style until they changed the rules, and in 1978 the rule went into effect that barred contact with receivers beginning five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. The rule helped open up offenses and the passing attack, and changed the way football is and was played.
For Blount, it was insulting when the rule was first implemented, but he still had four interceptions in the 1978 season and had 22 of his 58 career interceptions after the rule went into effect.
A former third-round pick out of Southern, Blount is one of the best cornerbacks in NFL history and his play style literally changed the way the NFL operates. The wide-open passing offenses of today are in large part due to the Mel Blount Rule preventing physical play at or close to the line of scrimmage, and while it certainly made things harder for defenses, good cornerbacks like Blount were able to rise above it and still continue to be productive in the NFL.
Trumpy talked about the play in an interview for NFL Films when Blount was named one of the NFL’s greatest players, and said he didn’t remember anything about the play, but still has a scar from it. It was a hard hit from Blount, but Anderson’s throw didn’t help Trumpy. In modern terms, it would be considered a “hospital ball,” but it was Blount’s actions on the hit that were the catalyst to getting the rules changed and in turn making the NFL a more offense-friendly league.
The rule didn’t stop Blount’s dominance, and it certainly didn’t stop the Steelers, as they still won the Super Bowl in 1978 and 1979 despite a rule being created due to how good one of the team’s star players was. If anything, Blount’s dominance after the implementation of the rule just further reinforced how dominant he was, and it’s no surprise he’s now in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
