Ron Rivera Bans Hoverboards After Panthers Players Raced Them Down Hallways

The Carolina Panthers are looking to cap off a strong season with a Super Bowl title. If they win the big game, though, their hoverboards won’t be anywhere in sight as head coach Ron Rivera has banned his players from bringing them to the team facility.

While the ban only became public knowledge this week, Rivera instituted it shortly after Christmas. The decision was prompted by videos of the devices catching on fire after a battery short circuit and people falling, according to ESPN.

“Have you seen those things on YouTube blowing up?” Rivera said. “I mean, that’s what concerns me more than anything else. What if something crazy happens?”

But the coach also has another injury risk on his mind, as he also encouraged his players not to ride hoverboards to and from work, either. “I will say this, too,” Rivera continued. “I caught them drag racing in the freaking hallway one time, too.”

According to tight end Ed Dickson, about 25 players rode their hoverboards together earlier this year. He’s not too upset about the ban, though.

“It wasn’t like mean or anything like that,” he said of the way Rivera addressed the issue. “It was like, ‘Guys, I’ve seen a video on the safety issue. I don’t want them in the locker room.’

For what it’s worth, Dickson doesn’t allow his young son to ride a hoverboard, either. “It’s too flimsy,” he explained. “If you don’t know what you’re doing you can fall off and hurt yourself. My son, I tried to teach him how to ride it. He was too goofy with it, so I said, ‘No thank you.”‘

When push comes to shove, it’s all about keeping the team in the best possible shape for their playoff push. “We don’t want something crazy to happen,” Rivera said. “We’re trying to limit their exposure to injuries.”

Photo: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Carolina Panthers yells for his team to get back to their sidelie after being call for unsportsmanlike conduct during their game against the Atlanta Falcons at Bank of America Stadium on December 13, 2015 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers won 38-0. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)