Former Colts and Buccaneers coach Tony Dungy says Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh needs to change his approach to the game.
Asked on the Dan Patrick Show what he would say if he were Suh’s coach, Dungy said he’d tell Suh that he has to stop getting personal foul penalties.
“He’s going to have to change some of the things he does,” Dungy said of Suh. “I know he’s saying, ‘Hey, they’re targeting me, they’re looking out for me.’ Well, you may be the comparison to Shaquille O’Neal: If you want to stay in the game and not foul out, even though they may be targeting you or looking at you differently, you’ve got to do some things to stay in the game. That’s what he’s going to have to do, and make adjustments.”
Suh’s latest penalty and fine came for slamming Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton to the ground, and Dungy said Suh needs to stop doing things like that.
“You can’t continue to get penalties and you can’t continue to draw fines and possibly get suspended,” Dungy said. “Clearly in the rules you can’t slam the quarterback.”
Dungy said that no matter how good a player Suh is, the Lions can’t afford to let him pile up 15-yard penalties.
“There are going to be times when you have to change,” Dungy said. “If they’re saying you’re hitting the man too hard, you have to change or else you’re putting your team in jeopardy.”