Players angered over NFL illegal hit policy
Players aren’t quite sure where the National Football League (NFL) is going with its illegal hit policy, and some say that the league has been inconsistent in handing down punishments. The players feel that the disciplinary action taken
by the league in recent weeks has been excessively harsh, and the punishments have not always fitted the crime. Therefore there is a feeling for victimisation among players.
Responding to the concerns, NFL executive vice president Ray Anderson said that the league would not condone or tolerate favouritism, and assured the players that the process was transparent.
New Orleans Saints’ defensive end, Will Smith is one of the players who believe that the league has been inconsistent in its enforcement of the rules. “You see a guy get punched in the face and get fined $25,000 and not suspended, but then you see a guy
mush a guy with a helmet on and get fined the exact same thing.” He stressed that the NFL must make it clear what exactly the fines are for.
Many players feel that the leagues’ decisions are influenced more by the outcome of a certain play, instead of the circumstances. Packers Cornerback Charles Woodson said, “If a guy ends up hurt or seems a little out of it, woozy or whatever, then all of
a sudden it's a personal foul and a $50,000 or $75,000 fine or whatever it is,”. He added that no player tries to hurt another, and they all take great care to make sure not to cause injury to themselves or their opponents. However Woodson says that in the
heat of the moment players can’t control the impact. “Your job is to go get the ball and try to get the ball out if you can. I think they're taking that away from guys.”
The NFL has upped the ante on the volume of fines. Just this week six players were fined for hits, and some of those fines were very questionable. Among those penalised was Detroit Lions’ Ndamukong Suh. Suh was fined for hitting Jay Cutler in the back of
the helmet, but replays show that Suh did not even make contact with Cutler. Somehow though, the league managed to fine Suh for a hit that should not even have drawn a penalty.
Along with Suh, four other players were fined for hits against quarterbacks. The league has said that the quarterback who isn’t running is in defenceless against vicious hits from defenders, and hence must be protected by the rules. Players on the other
hand believe that the league is only interested in protecting its star players. The overwhelming majority of fines issued by the league this season have been against defending players. Obviously there are risks for both offensive and defensive players in hockey,
and the league preference for the offense has disenfranchised many defenders.
Defenders have said that the pace of the game makes it impossible to completely eliminate helmet-to-helmet hits. “We don't play the game with a remote in our hand, to be able to rewind and slow down,” Denver Broncos Safety Brian Dawkins said.
When Steelers’ defender James Harrison met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, he told him that as the player making contact, the responsibility for the outcome of a hit falls on the defending player. However both sides make contact on the line of scrimmage,
yet the league still shows a preference for the offence.
Players also feel that for them to change the way they have played since they started playing football was unreasonable. Defenders feel handicapped by the league’s enforcement of rules. The NFL countered simply by saying that it has not changed any rules,
but instead taken a stricter approach to their enforcement.
Regardless of the concerns, the league has made it abundantly clear that it will not let up on its crackdown on egregious hits. “We understand the utmost importance of player safety and particularly to prevent head trauma and neck trauma,” Ray Anderson said.
“We have dedicated ourselves to do that and will not relent in protecting against those illegal hits.”
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