Gentle reminder: When an Offensive Tackle has his arm around a pass rusher's neck, it's probably not Offensive Holding.

If you see this picture and your main takeaway is "Look at that hold", this post is for you!

It's 3rd and 10, the pass rusher comes flying around the edge, flailing his arms wildly in the air because the opposing Offensive Tackle has him in one-armed choke hold. "That's fucking holding Ref! How do you not see that?! This shit is rigged!" everyone screams.

Chances are, the ref did see it, and chances are, it's not Holding: When a defensive player is held by an offensive player during the following situations, Offensive Holding will not be called... (i) if, during a defensive charge, a defensive player uses a “rip” technique that puts an offensive player in a position that would normally be holding.

When an offensive lineman has his arm around an Edge Rusher's neck, it is almost always because the rusher used a rip move, which negates any Holding penalty. This rule exception needs to exist, otherwise pass rushers would just contort their bodies trying to draw penalties, instead of actually playing football. It would be the NBA, basically.

(However, it IS holding if the OL uses his now-legal choke hold to take the defender to the ground.)

So if you notice that your favorite OLB or DE is constantly getting taken out of from plays by the OT's outside arm around his neck, it's not because the Refs are conspiring against your team, it's because the defender's rip move is either predictable or not that good.

Here's the source: https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/2021-nfl-rulebook/#section-1-blocking,-use-of-hands-and-arms

Thank you for reading. Tell a friend. Go America. Go Broncos.