NFL isn’t banning ’cheat motion’ used by Miami Dolphins’ receiver Tyreek Hill

For the Miami Dolphins and their fans, there has been a nervousness about the NFL intending to handcuff Tyreek Hill and the pre-snap motion that helped him break records last year.

There shouldn’t be.

Reports say the motion rule was revised for 2024.

And that it’s a point of emphasis.

Fullback Alec Ingold even acknowledged Wednesday there is a “daily discussion” in meetings about the rules, including as it pertains to motion.

Now, the facts.

The rule, for purposes of this discussion, is unchanged.

It isn’t even a point of emphasis.

It’s a controversy with no merit.

It’s true that when Hill cuts upfield, he pushes the envelope and then some. And that occasionally in 2023, he broke a split-second too soon by cutting toward the line of scrimmage.

But as for officials engaging in some sort of targeted crackdown against the Dolphins?

As Hill himself would say, “horse radish.”

The NFL said as much Wednesday in meeting with Dolphins reporters, pushing back on an assertion perpetuated by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk early this month under the headline: “ ‘Cheat motion’ is now officially cheating.”

“The officials presumably will be told to watch for it,” Florio wrote. “They’ll presumably warn the teams about it. It’s frankly surprising that the first sign of the change is coming from the official rule book, and not from coaches and players either complaining about the new language — or celebrating the fact that they’ll no longer have to defend against it.”

It frankly shouldn’t be surprising. There’s neither a reason to complain about the “change” or celebrate it. There is no change that will handicap Hill, who led the NFL with 1,799 receiving yards last year and was just voted the league’s top player by peers. In fact, the only rewording of the rule could help him.

Tyreek Hill won’t have to stop before snap

The rule in question is 7-4-2 of the 2024 NFL rule book. The key sentence reads:

“Any eligible backfield player who changes his stance does not have to come to a complete stop prior to the snap, as long as his actions are not abrupt (false start) or forward (illegal motion).”

Now compare that to the 2023 rule:

“Any eligible receiver is permitted to change from a two-point stance to a three-point stance, or from a three-point stance to a two- point stance, provided he comes to a complete stop prior to the snap. If he does not come to a complete stop, it is a false start.”

There’s one other caveat to the 2024 rule, stating that “If an eligible receiver who is on the line of scrimmage moves backward or changes his stance (two point to three point or conversely) and does not come to a complete stop before the snap, it is a false start.”

The bottom line: If Hill doesn’t move backward and doesn’t change his stance — shouldn’t be hard to abide, yes? — he does not have to stop before the snap.

In other words, a player who doesn’t need an edge to blow past everybody will continue to have that edge in 2024.

Or has somebody signed Noah Lyles to play cornerback?

Mike McDaniel used “cheat” motion 7 times in Week 1, mainly with Tyreek Hill.

Sean McVay & Kyle Shanahan come back the next week and run a similar concept with Tutu Atwell and Deebo Samuel.

The motion gives the WR a running start into his route.

It’s a copycat league. pic.twitter.com/NmOan6gK1S

— Kyle Posey (@KP_Show) September 28, 2023

After seeing Hill’s motion in action in Week 1 last season, San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan copied it from McDaniel, calling it a “cheat motion” because it flirted with the NFL’s longstanding rule against having a player motion toward the line of scrimmage at the snap.

Hill says Mike McDaniel would have found solution anyway

Hill being Hill, he didn’t sound alarmed when caught off guard earlier in training camp with a question on the crackdown against his “cheat motion.”

“Our head coach, he’ll find a way to make a way around that,” Hill said. “ … He’s one of the best offensive-minded coaches in the game.”

McDaniel pointed out he had “a little cheat code” in his midst: general manager Chris Grier, a member of the competition committee.

“The emphasis is clearly stated,” McDaniel said. “If you interpret that as exclusively timing motions, you better not simulate the snap counter. You’d better not move forward. And our motions will have to be legal for them to work unless we just want to run minus 5-yard plays, so I think we’re fine with that. We’ll always cater to the rules and I think to simulate the snap is illegal and we should not do that.”

Maybe, then, we should stop calling it a cheat motion. Maybe try something more fitting.

Cheetah motion, anyone?