Taking A Knee

[mbyron]

Clearly we have 2 schools of thought here:

1. Facilitate a smooth and injury-free end of the game by publicizing A's intention to take a knee, and penalize A if they fail to follow through. The rationale for this policy is game management and player safety.

2. Never tell players what to do or put a team in a position where it cannot execute an otherwise legal play. The rationale for this policy is that the rules don't change at the end of a game.

Both rationales are legitimate, though obviously the policies are incompatible and neither finds support in the rule book. The best approach would be to consult your local association, find or establish an association policy for games in your area, and follow that policy.