Comments on: Ryan Clark doesn’t agree with Ed Reed suspension

By: goodellhatesfootball

goodellhatesfootball — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 21:04:05 +0000

Steeler fan here and I agree with Clarke. No way Reed should be suspended for that hit nor penalized. There was nothing he could have done to avoid the hit outside of slowing down time. Sanders turned into the hit which caused the helmet-to-helmet contact.

The NFL is a fraud. At this point they are basically asking Defensive Backs to let the receivers catch the ball on them. Passing yards = ratings. If they really cared about player safety, why do they continue to ignore the offensive and defensive linemen who repeatedly slam their heads together on every play? I guarantee that is where most of the concussions stem from.

By: steelmeats

steelmeats — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 19:47:01 +0000

As PFT pointed out in a previous post, Goodell didn’t issue this punishment. Merton Hanks did. And everyone sayin that Sanders purposely lowered his head into Reed needs to go back and watch the replay. I suggest the slow motion version for some of you. There was no effort by sanders to lower his helmet. He got drilled just as he made the catch and turned his body to continue running. I don’t agree with the suspension but a hit to the head is a hit to the head, period. It happened, he got penalized like anyone else would have. Suspension is too much though

By: buffalose

buffalose — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 19:35:31 +0000

Valid1
That’s stupid reasoning for not wrapping up, you always wrap up, that’s part of tackling right, this hit for show needs to end, injuries aside. So many big plays happen solely because these guys won’t wrap because they , as you say, try to dislodge the ball,..,? … Right. And let him run for 15 more yards.
Goodell is coming down because former players are sueing the NFL, more players need to speak out like Roddy White. Grow a pair, tackle right. And speak out to save our game.

By: 6thsense79

6thsense79 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 18:48:16 +0000

Go for the thighs and knees DBs. Clearly that’s where this is heading. Most players try to avoid doing that because of how easily you can injure someone doing that but the league is not leaving them much of a choice. On Mike and Mike a league rep basically said even if the offensive player causes the head to head contact by ducking into it the dDB still would get fined or suspended.

By: dowhatifeellike

dowhatifeellike — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 18:05:44 +0000

Clearly, the only way to resolve the issue for good is for defenders to have their heads relocated to their lower backs.

By: valid1

valid1 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:54:14 +0000

he wasn’t trying to wrap up because it was already a 15 plus yard play. He was trying dislodge the man from the ball, you know like a football player would.

By: dcmaxx

dcmaxx — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:38:49 +0000

A lot of people had a good time laughing about the Saints and the unjust punishments issued by Goodell. You all should be have been worried about who was next and when another ridiculous decision by him was going to affect your team.

By: Beezo-Doo-doo-Zippity-Bop-bop-bop

Beezo-Doo-doo-Zippity-Bop-bop-bop — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:33:06 +0000

Ed Reed is a first ballot HOFer and is so for his magnificent play and ability, not for needless cheap shots. The NFL is awesome and plenty violent even when played within the rules. If there are as many folks who want to see players get hurt and almost no penalties or fines as the comments always seem to indicate I don’t know why the XFL never got off the ground and passed the NFL in popularity.

By: cereal blogger

cereal blogger — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:24:23 +0000

Probably b/c he’s a dirtier player than Reed with a track record of squaring up & spearing

By: buffalose

buffalose — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:23:51 +0000

Everyone crying youtube the hot heard around the world. Cleans a dudes clock and changes a game with a momentum swing. Aim at the belly and look at what your hitting, Reed never tried to wrap up, why these guys refuse to wrap up but rather try to cause harm astounds me.
If they think its that big of a deal they should fight the retired players for their lawsuit

By: sammythehair

sammythehair — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:17:31 +0000

That really was not even a penalty, had wr not turned and ran with his head down, reed wudda hit him largely with his shoulder from the angle he was from and lower. Turning with the ball, the wr displayed he was no longer defenseless!

By: ccoolahan14

ccoolahan14 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:10:45 +0000

No one agrees with the suspension. Yet Ryan Clark, for some reason, deserves an entire blog post. Everyone that plays for the Steelers immediately becomes over-publicized and overrated (Remember when Chris Hope got talked about all the time? How often did you hear about him as a Titan? Exactly. Ryan Clark wasn’t good enough for the REDSKINS. Now that he’s on the Steelers we can’t stop hearing about him).

By: geniusesq

geniusesq — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 17:10:14 +0000

Sanders bent down into him. But, I guess that doesn’t matter. What is the league coming to.

By: jimyritz

jimyritz — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:59:41 +0000

Reed should know better. The hit on Branch was illegal and the same in the Pitt game..

Maybe Reed will get the message…

By: devinhesterprynne

devinhesterprynne — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:52:49 +0000

Like everyone is saying, get used to it. The league had to do something in reaction to the concussion lawsuits, and this is that reaction.

By: realitypolice

realitypolice — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:48:43 +0000

Reed better be careful appealing that suspension, even though I agree it is BS.

Better he sit out against a weaker opponent like San Diego than lose his appeal and risk missing the Pittsburgh game.

In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why the NFL chose this case to make an example of. They know Reed is between a rock and a hard place.

By: opbilly

opbilly — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:47:37 +0000

reed had already started his tackle when sanders lowered his head. if you dont think receivers are learning to do the same thing to draw a penalty than you are foolish. when will this league start penalizing the player that actually caused the helmet to helmet hit….never! they want offense! they wont be happy until they have every defender trying to arm tackle. these guys are too big and strong any more to arm tackle, so they will shed the tackler and keep going which is more offense!

By: ridingwithnohandlebars

ridingwithnohandlebars — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:41:45 +0000

this is where the league has been heading so unfortunately they will have to deal with it or get out.

By: cd_ridge

cd_ridge — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:30:22 +0000

As a Steelers fan, I do not agree with Ed Reed’s suspension. I am hearing some of the same issues brought up when James Harrison was suspended last year. The difference is that Ed Reed is held in a higher regard than Harrison with respect to their reputations. Unfortunately for Reed, he getting it this year.

If the NFL were really serious about safety, they would make cut blocks illegal too.

By: azarkhan

azarkhan — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:29:28 +0000

A unwarranted penalty and suspension. At this rate, within 10 years the NFL will be as phony and artificial as pro wrestling

By: rhodeislandpatriotsfan

rhodeislandpatriotsfan — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:26:47 +0000

One can only wonder whether any player who is now critical of the league’s perceived overreaction to player safety will be among those future plaintiffs alleging that the league didn’t do enough to ensure their safety on the field. The league has no practical alternative here but to tighten up enforcement of these longstanding player safety rules as a hedge against future plaintiffs, some of whom may have difficulty distinguishing between the NFL and an ATM.

By: olcap

olcap — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:10:46 +0000

Reed led with his head, and made a helmet to helmet impact with Sanders. It should have been a penalty, and it should also include a suspension, since this is his third time for this kind of dangerous play.

By: fwippel

fwippel — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:03:09 +0000

The Reed suspension by the league is troubling.

At some point, the NFL is going to have to either accept that helmet-to-helmet hits are going to occur in space, and can occur even when the defender is trying to avoid it, or the league is going to have to outlaw tackling and switch to flag football.

The league is going to have to either start the difficult process of discerning a player’s intent on helmet-to-helmet hits, or severely limit the defender’s ability to hit. But the hit by Reed was not intentional, and a one game suspension for that is absurd.

By: cosmoman11

cosmoman11 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:01:15 +0000

If Ed Reed had known he was on double-secret probation maybe he would have avoided the helmet to helmet. The biggest problem with the fines and penalties is that they are arbitrary and inconsistent. If you don’t know that the next time results in a suspension then it is not much of a deterrent.

By: dowhatifeellike

dowhatifeellike — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:50:16 +0000

Well, we know Mr. Clark has no regard for player safety, namely his own, after suffering 2 concusions in a 3 week period and continuing to play.

Reed lowered his shoulder but couldn’t get his hips around in time to lead with it. It’s still a penalty and a fine, but I think a suspension is going too far.

The suspension was said to be for repeated violations, but when was his last fine? Didn’t he miss most of last season?

By: calhounlambeau

calhounlambeau — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:48:23 +0000

A vast majority of the leagues players have adapted and have not been fined/flagged for these penalties. It’s not difficult, as proven by most of the players in the league. Some people just can’t adapt to change…

By: arcaero

arcaero — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:48:00 +0000

Considering the NFL fined Browns WR Josh Gordon $20,000 a last week for a clean block on , ironically, Ed Reed (a block like good old Hines Ward made a career out of routinely delivering, and getting praised for) because, according to Gordon, “he didn’t see me coming”…
I would say a suspension for repeated blows to the head of defenseless opponents seems just about right on the Goodell sliding scale of “Random acts of Punishment”.

By: pickney1

pickney1 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:47:08 +0000

The days of the “No Fly Zone” for wide recievers are long gone. These days a offensive player has the ability to lower their head(Emmanual Sanders against Ed Reed) or injure a defensive ( see Matt Slauson against Brian Cushing) knowing their fine and or suspension will never be anywhere around the level of a defensive player.

By: burnttoast71854

burnttoast71854 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:43:18 +0000

U can’t hit a reciever if he’s in the air u can’t hit him until he has 2 feet on the ground u can’t hit him until he says ok I’m ready to be tackled. What a joke. Not a fan of either team. But defenders are in a no win situation.

By: tjacks7

tjacks7 — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:42:54 +0000

when was this 3 penalties in 3 seasons rule created? it seems awfully unfair to the players who are playing without even knowing the rules, as Goodell makes it up as he goes.