The Campaign For NFL Head-Hunting continues. That said, Zimmer may be already right!

Two weeks into the pre-season, and it's now clear that the biggest story in the NFL is the Helmet Rule.

The NFL is tweaking the video after the pre-season to aid teams and refs in seeing what is and is not a foul.

But Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer, whose team was probably the recipient of one of the larger "Hit 'em.  Hurt 'em.  Put 'em out.  Win." situations last year, is basically saying both that it will decide games and cost people jobs.

He's right.  And he may already be right on the basis of word out of Cincinnati today, if you believe a Pittsburgh Steeler fan on Twitter...

They cut him because he’s a big hitter! coming from a Steeler fan this dude plays hard, it’s a financial decision because they know how soft the @NFL is getting and don’t want him getting fined every week or worse suspended over a completely legal hit. https://t.co/OdnYH2v6lN

— Brandon Kline (@BrandonKline24) August 20, 2018

Mr. Kline, you're right.

He'd only been fined once (last year), according to Spotrac.  But the thing is, it's appearing that defense is going to be illegal this year.  And it's no freaking surprise, given that the NFL has glorified head-hunting since ESPN got on the Ronnie Lott fetish about 30 years ago.

Last year's full storyline was identifying key players, hurting them, and hence eliminating their teams from the champion discussion.  Zimmer should know:  His player's hit on Aaron Rodgers changed the rules so much that Richard Sherman has basically openly admitted that the only way to tackle is to headhunt, and shows a rugby tackle later in his Twitter to indicate a textbook rugby tackle would be 15 yards in the NFL.

(He's right.  It would, under the Rodgers Rule.  In fact, most rugby tackles would be illegal.  You can lift a player and take him to his back in some cases.  That kind of slam would be completely illegal in the NFL, and probably already was.  (Take him past horizontal, though, and you can be thrown out for a spear or tip tackle.))

But an ESPN study indicates that, already in the pre-season, it's getting messy out there.

• Only six teams have gone two pre-season games without being flagged for this rule.  Indianapolis would've been a seventh, but was flagged tonight for it.
• The Titans and Eagles have been flagged five times apiece for this rule.  The Cardinals, Falcons, Bears, Rams, 49ers, and Panthers, three times apiece.
• Only the one player has been ejected.