Chargers outside linebacker Dwight Freeney is not happy with Seahawks tight end Zach Miller, who hit San Diego’s Sean Lissemore with a block that Freeney described as illegal.
Freeney said that Miller took a cheap shot at Lissemore’s lower leg. Although Miller wasn’t penalized on the play, Freeney said he should have been.
“It looked very, very illegal to me,” Freeney said, via U-T San Diego. “Now, are they going to see everything? No. Should they catch that? Absolutely. Should that guy get a fine? Yes. Did he? Who knows.”
The NFL has not yet disclosed whether Miller was fined, but Freeney wants the league to crack down on low blocks. Instead, Freeney says the league’s emphasis on player safety just protects the players he calls the “moneymakers.”
“I’m running and I’ve got a big man on me here, high, and I’ve got to make a tackle – and then all of sudden a guy comes from behind me and clips my knees. How is that OK?” he said. “Everybody’s so concerned with player safety these days. There’s all these rules up protecting receivers, quarterbacks, kickers, punters.”
It’s a common refrain from defensive players, and it’s often completely correct: The NFL doesn’t protect defensive players the way it protects quarterbacks.