NFL ready to start suspending players for helmet-to-helmet hits

Posted by NBC Sports on October 18, 2010, 12:44 PM EDT

Sunday’s cavalcade of helmet-to-helmet hits could inspire real change in how such penalties are policed moving forward.

NFL vice president Ray Anderson told the The Associated Press the league may
start suspending players for dangerous helmet-to-helmet hits.  (They are listening to Rodney Harrison apparently.)

The change could take place immediatley. “Going forward there are certain hits that occurred that will be more susceptible to suspension,” Anderson said.

The league could go even further after the season.

“[Anderson] said NFL could change rules after the season to ban all hits with helmets,” Judy Battista of the New York Times relays.

So who could be suspended?  Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather, Steelers linebacker James Harrison, and Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson would seem to be in the most danger. Robinson would be an especially tough hit to police because of where he made contact with Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson.

Anderson says he can handle any criticism.

“If we’ve got to face the backlash of those who say we’re making the game too soft, then so be it,” he told the New York Times.

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116 responses to “NFL ready to start suspending players for helmet-to-helmet hits”

  2. NFL ready to start suspending players for helmet-to-helmet hits. Unless the Steelers do it. Then they’ll look the other way, as tradition dictates.

  3. Harrison should get 3 games at least.. Meriweather 2 games.. I don’t think Robinson should be suspended

  4. Can somebody explain to me how you truly believe that there was no helmet to helmet contact in the Desean Jackson hit? First off, the guy has a severe concussion with memory loss, he was out the second he was hit, his arms were limp in mid air, and dunta robinson has a concussion too! If Dunta used his shoulder, then how did he get knocked out.
    Also, watch the damn video, from the angle where it is shooting from the falcons side of the line of scrimmage, you can see dunta leading with his helmet. He may have meant to hit with his shoulder, but he put his head down too.
    The suspension in this instance would serve Dunta better than anybody else, because if he didnt also have a little contact with his shoulder pad, he would have crushed his neck.
    It was a beat hit, maybe not cheap or malicious, but certainly not clean, and should be punishable.

  6. I like the idea of ejecting players when they do it, and then having suspension to use later.

  7. Good, Harrison is a thug in pads and shouldn’t have the privilege of playing in the NFL if all he wants to do is hurt people.

  8. oh, and I’m almost certain that Meriweather was headhunting in retaliation for one of the times Welker got maimed last year. Todd Heap was just the slowest target.

  11. “NFL to suspend players for helmet-to-helmet hits”…..unless, of course, they play for the steelers, in which case they not only won’t be suspended, they won’t even be FLAGGED. Peter King is really “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a flag for the hit? Was he “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a roughing the passer call for lifting Vince Young off the ground then driving his entire body weight on top of him with the help of two of his friends (in the same week the Ravens lost because Suggs was given a roughing call for making the most legal and normal hit on a qb I’ve ever seen)? I’m “shocked” when really obvious penalties ARE called against the Steelers! Anyone who’s watching knows the division is completely rigged- refs are ALWAYS rigging steelers games and refs are ALWAYS rigging Ravens games (ever wonder why EVERY SINGLE TIME the Ravens play the Steelers there is a controversy about the refs when Hochuli isn’t officiating? And EVERY SINGLE TIME the “questionable” calls go against the Ravens? It’s the perfect storm for rigged football; They don’t call Ravens-Steelers “RigFest” for nothing.

  12. They could be suspended, just like they “could” be ejected and yet no one has been.
    I’ll believe it when I see it.

  13. James like the man who shares his last name Rodney are both head hunters. His suspension is long overdue.. would have happened earlier if he played somewhere other than the “Burgh” where dirty football is considered “Hard Nosed” and the owner “classy”

  14. I haven’t seen the Robinson hit but Meriweather and Harrison deserve at least a hefty fine.

  15. Do it! or they’ll be hitting players in the head just to get them out the game. Soon it’ll be just as strategic as calling a timeout before the snap of a game winning field goal.

  17. Brandon Meriweather got flagged for 1 helmet to helmet…boy had 3 during the game, he’s absolute trash he should be suspended. The Dunta/DeSean hit wasn’t dirty but he should still sit for a game, it’s the only way these guys are going to stop using their heads as a battering ram

  18. If the NFL is committed to player safety, then contact judged to be a flagrant helmet-to-helmet hit against a defenseless player should result in either an ejection or suspension. These particular violations are NOT “just part of the game,” and a fine is simply not a credible deterrent.
    Let me be clear: Football is, and should be, a hard-hitting, full-contact sport. And nobody is trying to inch the game closer to touch football. We’re simply talking common sense here.
    The violent hit on DeSean Jackson did not appear to be helmet-to-helmet contact, as the defender seemed to lead with his shoulder against the receiver’s upper body. In that case, a suspension is not warranted. If the NFL concludes that it constitutes unnecessary roughness against a defenseless receiver, then a fine is more appropriate.
    On the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised if Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather’s hit on Ravens tight end Todd Heap results in a one-game suspension.

  19. They need to do something before Jerome Harrison kills someone He lead both of those hits intentionally with his helmet. He should be playing with the Titans from what the NFL always reports on how they are a dirty team. Why not add another dirty player on the team.

  20. I bet that the league didn’t even know what Harrison said before making this common sense decision. Can you imagine how bad it would be if Cortland Finnegan actually had some size with his verbal goal of being dirty?

  21. I don’t see Harrison getting suspended. Fined likely, but not suspended.
    The helmet-to-helmet hit on Cribbs took place with Cribbs as a running back. If they suspend every helmet-to-helmet hit on ball carriers, they’d better expand the rosters to include a couple of extra LBs because there will be multiple suspensions every week.
    Harrison’s hit on Massoquoi (or however you spell his name) seemed worse to me. It was forarm to helmet but Massoquoi was in a more defenseless position than Cribbs.

  22. It needs to happen, all of the aforementioned hits were absolutely illegal and have no place in the game. Harrison is a thug in pads, and the refs do always look the other way on Steelers calls. That’s how they’ve been winning for years, take out the other teams best players. If they were to start getting suspensions for it, maybe it would stop. The Robinson hit on Jackson was just as bad as the rest, don’t care if he was leading with his shoulder, he shouldn’t be aiming for the receivers head, both players were knocked out, Jackson was actually twitching for a few seconds. It doesn’t make the game too soft, you can still hit hard without using your helmet or hitting the head of another player.

  23. Harrison plays to hurt… not injure. Don’t know about the other games, but Harrisons play is within the rules. He is not having fun out there… this is is job and I for one love the way he plays the game.
    Cry all you want. He’s not changing and we don’t give a sh*t if you feel he’s dirty.
    Hitting isn’t an exact science. Runners have some responsibility to protect themselves. If you duck instead of taking your hit, well… you might get hurt.
    Oh yeah, take good defense out of football, add in a lockout, and you’ll see some of the most loyal fans saying good-bye. Maybe we’ll all just start watching soccer if football is going to a “touch” sport.

  24. “NFL to suspend players for helmet-to-helmet hits”…..unless, of course, they play for the steelers, in which case they not only won’t be suspended, they won’t even be FLAGGED. Peter King is really “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a flag for the hit? Was he “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a roughing the passer call for lifting Vince Young off the ground then driving his entire body weight on top of him with the help of two of his friends (in the same week the Ravens lost because Suggs was given a roughing call for making the most legal and normal hit on a qb I’ve ever seen)? I’m “shocked” when really obvious penalties ARE called against the Steelers! Anyone who’s watching knows the division is completely rigged- refs are ALWAYS rigging steelers games and refs are ALWAYS rigging Ravens games (ever wonder why EVERY SINGLE TIME the Ravens play the Steelers there is a controversy about the refs when Hochuli isn’t officiating? And EVERY SINGLE TIME the “questionable” calls go against the Ravens? It’s the perfect storm for rigged football; They don’t call Ravens-Steelers “RigFest” for nothing.
    ***
    If the league was trying to “rig” the last Steelers-Ravens game they did a pretty poor job – 11 penalties on the Steelers, including a call for Mason’s beatiful dive trying to avoid Harrison at the line of scrimmage.

  25. Can’t speak to the other games. But where do people come up with 3 games for Harrison?
    On the Massaquoi hit … his head is up and his arms are in front of him. Don’t believe me … watch it on YouTube.
    Cribbs was the rusher on the previous hit and they pretty much let everybody get away with everything in that situation.
    I agree that they need to protect the players, but it all starts with coaching. Pop Warner will teach you from day one to see what you hit.

  26. It’s about time. I’m so tired of watching guys use their helmets as weapons and I would hope that they would go further and start suspending anyone for hitting someone on the head, no matter what they use. Both sides of the line have a right to earn money and I don’t mind seeing them protecting guys from cheap shots, even if it means going after guys for chop blocks that put the defenders out of the games. 16 games is hard enough and if they go to 18, it’s one less thing that they’d have to worry about.

  27. I guess the league should also be looking at T.J. Ward’s helmet-to-helmet hit that forced Mendenhall out of the Browns game near the end.

  28. Harrison should be out for the next 2 games.
    He led with his helmet then celebrated hurting another player with a helmet shot.

  29. @zonepro764–You don’t even know who the hell James Harrison is—Obviously refering to him as Jerome Harrison shows your complete lack of Pro Football acumen—-Go watch the SEC swimming and diving finals–ya fairy

  30. The NFL won’t do anything. They’re too intent on cutting down on teams playing leapfrog in the end zone. Who cares if a person loses his mental facilities for life.

  31. @ccoolahan14
    You’re absolutely right (and no, I’m not a Ravens fan). Somehow when the Steelers make these hits, the announcers and apparently the officials claim that they’re a “physical, punishing football team.” When the Ravens make the exact same type of hits, people say they’re head hunting and flags are thrown.
    And by the way, Harrison said “I’m not opposed to hurting anyone.” Yeah James, you made that clear when you beat your girlfriend a few years ago.

  32. Leading with you helmet as long as it’s not “helmet-to-helmet” is Ok as evidenced by the hit in the Falcons-Eagles game. The defenders head was down but his right shoulder that hit Jacksons chest and the resulting whiplash is what caused the concussion.
    As far as Ejections/Suspensions are concerned, how about Automatic Ejection “if their is a flag thrown for leading with the helmet”.
    And how about this: If the player who gets hit by the illegal hit is injured and out for any period of time, the player who committed the foul is suspended for the same amount of time. (This might actually work in the NBA and NHL also)

  33. 1) This is football. I know its shocking to people when there is helmet to helmet contact, however, the helmet sits on top of people’s heads! When you lean into a hit, its hard to not make some sort of contact with the helmet.
    2) I don’t buy that any NFL player is trying to have a helmet to helmet collision. It’s simply not in any players best interest as the risk of paralysis is always there when you lower your head.
    3) How is this rule going to be enforced? There is going to be nothing but inconsistency with calls based on differing angles, player size, and speed of the play. I don’t think you can take it further and have ejections, b/c that is only going to further the inconsistencies.

  34. “I like the idea of ejecting players when they do it, and then having suspension to use later.”
    How are they going to eject players if they don’t flag the hit? In each of the last two weeks Aaron Rodgers suffered helmet-to-helmet hits, meither was flagged, but the Redskins’ goon was fined $5000. We’ll have to see if the same happens to the Miami goon after the NFL reviews the tapes from this week’s games.

  35. Steeler haters/bottom-feeders are always looking for an advantage when it comes to the Steelers. What’s the matter? You wimps afraid of our team? Losers.

  36. Meriweather’s hit was clearly an intentional helmet to helmet hit.
    Both of Harrison’s hits were clean.
    Robinson’s hit was clean as well.
    Most of the crying is coming from Cleveland Clowns fans. Seems like the squeaky wheels will get the oil. Pussies.

  37. Aww ccoolahan14 is upset that the Steelers are in first place in the division. maybe it goes deeper than that… could it be that the Ravens just cant beat the Steelers unless Big Ben is out?
    Win the game on the field stop bitching about the refs.

  38. I am a die hard Eagles fan but I don’t think Robinson’s hit was illegal. He buried his shoulder into Jacksons chest and his head whipped back like a bobble head doll. Hard hit for sure and maybe his head was down but the helmet didnt cause the damage there.

  39. They wanna suspend Harrison, but the refs didnt even throw a flag!!! You can try to decapitate a defenseless receiver but dont a guy over 5 yards downfield or else its illegal contact?? Or even worse, dont let a receiver PUSH OFF on you or else you’ll get called for pass interference (Cheifs-Houston)!!
    This league needs to get its priorities straight, the refs and all these ridiculous rules are ruining the sport…

  40. “If we’ve got to face the backlash of those who say we’re making the game too soft, then so be it,” he told the New York Times.
    Too late for that…everyone KNOWS you are soft, flaccid wimps.

  41. P.S. ccoolahan14, Peter King picked the Steelers to win the Super Bowl… you might want to find someone else to lean on

  42. Think how many games would Rodney Harrison have been suspended if this rule would have been in effect when he played?

  43. Nonsense, and the people who pay lip service to “no one wants to take anything away from the game..” need a cup check as they are deluding themselves, the offense already has every advantage, now heaven forbid someone *gasp* tackles someone.
    When the tackler is shorter than the target..guess what will hit first? even proper form tackling will mean the helmet will lead when the opponent is tackled and yet the football Nannies would outlaw that as well.
    Why not just ensure uniform heights so that cannot happen?
    Better yet, flags! just put flags around their waists! That will solve everything!

  44. Ecchh. I changed my mind about this four times in the last minute and a half. Part of me thinks it’s a good idea, but the rest of me knows it will end up hurting the game because I just KNOW it will be implemented in the same knee-jerk fashion as all the trendy “let’s keep the quarterback safe” crap.
    Some players are dirty and need to be punished, though. Harrison’s probably on the top of that list.

  45. I thought the Massaquoi hit was legal. Watch the replay closely, looks more like Harrison hit him with his arms, not his helmet.
    The Cribbs hit was definitely all helmet though.

  46. Anyone who’s watching knows the division is completely rigged- refs are ALWAYS rigging steelers games and refs are ALWAYS rigging Ravens games (ever wonder why EVERY SINGLE TIME the Ravens play the Steelers
    Sounds like a Bengal or Browns fan that just can’t handle the fact that their teams always stink and the Steelers always win. We heard the same whining and crying back in the 1970’s

  47. It’s the same as a boxer… you get (over)paid to play a game for a living.. live with the consequences of your decision. If you don’t like the way the game is, get a 9-5er like the rest of us. You get paid millions to play a GAME! You are OUR entertainment, and we don’t like the product we watch getting pussified. I have 4 season tickets and damnit… I want to see some hitting! You can pay me the veteran minimum and I’ll risk taking a helmet to helmet shot all year long for 6 figures. No sympathy whatsoever. Ohh and by the way, DeSean Jackson can thank Kevin Kolb for hanging him out there over the middle, so can Mossaquaoiuiioiauoii (or whatever it is), he can thank Colt McCoy. You see alot more people getting killed because there are so many weak armed QBs in the NFL these days. Strong armed QBs have the ball in the air less time, so the defender gets less time to close in on the target. If you have a sissy armed QB, the balls hangs in the air forever and the entire back 7 has a chance to close on the receiver and wreck him. It’s as much the QBs fault as it is the defender.

  48. Gallagher u sound like an Eagles fan….maybe i would be more sympathetic if Jackson didn’t talk so much and danced in the endzone to show the Falcons up.

  49. @ccoolahan14
    on the contrare, the raven’s opponents have been the most penalized teams combined when playing the Ravens.
    so STFU about these cry baby conspiracy theories.

  50. Who could be suspended??
    He said MOVING FORWARD you idiot. They are not going to be suspending anyone for hits this weekend.

  51. They need to suspend QB’s not defensive players, for leaving their WR’s out to get their head knocked off.
    I wonder if anyone has thought about the increase in passing frequency and decrease in QB quality directly relating to the increase in concussions.

  52. I can remember watching the NFL when defensive linemen used to dump the QB’s on their heads. You used to have to be tough to play. Pretty soon it’ll turn into touch football.
    Having said that, it’s apparent when you see helmet-to-helmet contact the defensive player is trying to hurt the ball carrier. Yes there are times when that is not the intent and in those instances you can see it wasn’t done intentionally. You can hit them just as hard if you connect in the mid section. Aiming for the upper body is done to hurt or punish the player period. If you want to stop the practice then suspend the offender. If he does it again he’s out of football.

  53. They need to play flag football then! My gosh, all tv shows are violent hits and nwo people are complaining? If you are afraid to get hit, quit playing! I guess WR need to have dresses on now, since most are diva’s anyhow!

  54. Calm down people, it was just one of those weeks.
    All we need is a knee jerk reaction like this a$$ Goodell likes to do.
    As for you
    ccoolahan14
    GO SUCK YOUR THUMB LOSER,
    the game is played by big tough men, who make alot of money.
    You all sound like a bunch of liberals WWAAAA

  55. The Robinson hit almost looked like they just ran into each other at full speed. He put his head down more as a defensive measure than an actual attempt at tackling. Like he was ball watching and then realized he was in the middle of a game and then, oops, there is the player who caught the ball right in front of him. Doesn’t mean he didn’t do anything wrong or need to be fined/suspended.

  56. They need to do something before Jerome Harrison kills someone He lead both of those hits intentionally with his helmet. He should be playing with the Titans from what the NFL always reports on how they are a dirty team. Why not add another dirty player on the team.
    ***
    It’s James Harrison. On the second hit there was no helmet-to-helmet contact. Harrison hit the receiver’s head with a forearm.
    The shot on Cribbs was helmet-to-helmet, but Cribbs was acting as a RB – not a receiver – so it’s debateable whether anything will come of that hit. RBs aren’t protected the same way receivers are.

  57. Lets make sure its helmet to helmet though , UNLIKE the play with Jimmy Leonard on Brandon LLoyd in the Jets V Denver game …That F’n Line Judge needs to be de-moted back to the CFL for that call and the 4-5 other phantom INTF call’s they called on the Jets,worst officiated game I’ve seen….Some one needs to remind the Officials to check there hometown alligence at the door,

  58. Jerome Harrison is just typical Pittsburgh trash.
    We have to remember that football at this level is solely for our entertainment. As much as the hard hitting and brutal hits are entertaining, the last thing we want to see is someone paralyzed or with brain damage.
    Oh and did I say Jerome Harrison is typical Pittsburgh trash?

  59. “NFL to suspend players for helmet-to-helmet hits”…..unless, of course, they play for the steelers, in which case they not only won’t be suspended, they won’t even be FLAGGED. Peter King is really “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a flag for the hit? Was he “shocked” that Harrison didn’t get a roughing the passer call for lifting Vince Young off the ground then driving his entire body weight on top of him with the help of two of his friends (in the same week the Ravens lost because Suggs was given a roughing call for making the most legal and normal hit on a qb I’ve ever seen)? I’m “shocked” when really obvious penalties ARE called against the Steelers! Anyone who’s watching knows the division is completely rigged- refs are ALWAYS rigging steelers games and refs are ALWAYS rigging Ravens games (ever wonder why EVERY SINGLE TIME the Ravens play the Steelers there is a controversy about the refs when Hochuli isn’t officiating? And EVERY SINGLE TIME the “questionable” calls go against the Ravens? It’s the perfect storm for rigged football; They don’t call Ravens-Steelers “RigFest” for nothing.
    —————————————————
    Yes ccoolahan14. We do that every year. Then in the off season, the Steeler fans and refs get together and watch videos of it while playing radio talk shows from Baltimore of the fans lamenting how unfair it is. It is like Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown. You will keep doing the same thing over and over. But you want to know what the real best part is? Reading the idiotic blog postings and message boards. We know what you are saying is true, which makes it all the funnier. But keep it up, Raven and Brown fans tears are the sweetest!

  60. All you men here are wimps. Actually, you should be embarrased that you claim to be men who like football. I am a woman and want to see a hard hitting football game. Football is a contact sport. It’s based on hitting the other player who has the ball. It’s a risk the players take for the money. You complain about Brady wearing a skirt, yet you turn around and say a hard hits should be banned from the game.
    First of all, with regards to Rodney Harrison’s comment, did you read what King wrote:
    “I will hand it to Rodney Harrison. In the year-and-a-half I’ve worked with him, he’s become more thoughtful about the game than I remember from his playing days, when his life was a seek-and-destroy mission.”
    Keys words here are “seek and destroy mission.” so apparently it was okay for Rodney to hit hard when he was playing, but now that he’s an analyst, he wants the hits taken out of the game.
    Here’s the other issue I have with this idea–and all of you complain about it week after week on PFT.
    The officiating is not “fair.” There is no standard for a pass interference call or a roughing the passer call. Everything seems to be subjective. With that in mind, how do you regulate a helmet-to-helmet hit that was intentional to one where the hit was subsequent after a shoulder-to-shoulder hit? And when do you suspend them? Their next game? If they look at game tapes on Monday, do you let them know Tuesday? If the game is Monday night, do you look at game tape Tuesday and let them know Wednesday? Ruins the team’s ability to prepare for the next game.
    And can the player appeal the suspension like the do the current suspensions?
    New rules were put in place to eliminate the hard hits and they didn’t work.
    Basically, you’re going to punish teams with good defenses.

  61. It’s James Harrison not Jerome and the cheap shot artist needs suspended for at least 6 games.Two for the comments that he’s not against hurting someone for the game but not injure a guy long term and 4 for the two hits he made.Because he plays for the Steelers he probably wont get anything.A fine is useless,but if they take him off the field then the Rooney’s would cry and it will only happen if they don’t have any primetime games just like they made sure Ben got back before their Monday Night Game.The NFL is only interested making money or Ben would of gotten all 6 games.
    Cliffylee

  62. clubfoot says:
    October 18, 2010 1:15 PM
    Suspend players? I don’t think there was a flag thrown on any of the plays in question.
    –Yes, there was. Dunta was penalized. It doesn’t matter anyway. Guys get fined all the time w/o having a penalty first.
    I think the Dunta hit was pretty egregious. He clearly led with his head against a receiver that didn’t have the ball. In this case I think he should be suspended 1-3 games and get a fine of $50,000.

  63. Die-hard Steeler fan here….
    Okay, suspend players like Harrison for shots taken running at full speed, in pursuit of an opponent. I agree–take the head out of the game.
    Then the NFL has to police linemen smashing helmets 40-50 times a game Right? Then there is the running back who delivers as much helmet as any other player–and it’s reciprocated by defenses.
    Blah, blah, blah…All the hand wringing, all the gnashing of mouthguards and I guarantee the league will never take the ONLY acton that wll almost instantly take the head out of the game–remove the helmet or make helmets with Nerf Ball material, or go back to leather head gear.
    Make it so the pretty boys have to protect their pretty faces and the problem would be over tomorrow.

  64. The hit on DeSean Jackson was unfortunate. Both players were hurt. But it was otherwise a good hard play to the chest forcing an incompletion. I hope the NFL doesn’t punish Robinson.
    Meriweather and Harrison, on the other hand, aimed too high. Clumsy or malicious–it doesn’t matter. They should receive fines and warnings that they face suspension if FUTURE infractions occur.

  65. Jerome Harrison is just typical Pittsburgh trash.
    We have to remember that football at this level is solely for our entertainment. As much as the hard hitting and brutal hits are entertaining, the last thing we want to see is someone paralyzed or with brain damage.
    Oh and did I say Jerome Harrison is typical Pittsburgh trash?
    ***
    Wow – you have to wonder if some of you guys even watch football. It shouldn’t be that hard to get James Harrison’s name right. He’s been one of the most dominant defensive players for the last 3 seasons.
    Jerome Harrison would be Eagles trash and ex-Browns trash.

  66. Telling NFL players they have to make precise and constistently proper decisions on if, when, how hard and at what angle to hit other players is like telling a NASCAR driver they have to be prepared to stop on a moments notice with 50 feet to do so. And why do we fo see NASCAR races? Because they crash… but at least they don’t get suspended for it.
    Suspending players is unfair and unrealistic. But hey… if someone gets hurt, doesn’t it feel so much better when you can blame someone? If you can’t blame someone, then you might actually have to face the fact that football is an incredibly dangerous sport in which people sustain serious injuries almost every single game. Admitting that would mean you might have to kill the golden goose.

  67. It’s interesting to note how aggressive Defensive players started to become after they made it penalty for Offensive linemen to go after Defensive players hanging around a pile.
    Usually that’s when things got evened up against some of the Defensive guys who were aggressively taking shots at Offensive players.

  68. It doesn’t matter if it happens intentionally or not. Offensive linemen don’t intentionally falsestart, but if they accidently do they are flagged. Sure, hitting a player with the helmet infront might be unintentional, but it is (will) be a penatly.
    Oh and i am sure it will be applied completly unfairly and arbitrarily. Hits are one of the fastest hardest to see plays. i can see how a ref could miss it.
    Big question is could you challenge a replay of a helmet hit?

  69. I don’t want to see anybody intentionally try to hurt someone, whether they do or don’t play for the Steelers. I also don’t have a problem with suspensions for intentionally trying to hurt someone. But I think enforcing any proposed rule will be very difficult. It is a violent fast-paced sport where players are twisting and turning at the last second. I have seen many times when players lower their head or slide in a certain direction at the last second that might lead to a helmet-to-helmit hit.
    The other thing from yesterday’s game was the warm ovations the Steeler fans gave to the injured Browns players. In fact, Cribbs got about 4 ovations since the fans kept waiting for him to finally walk off the field. Yet, Steeler fans get criticized like they were scum of the earth. People should look in the mirror. You wish you had the class of the average Steeler fan. Sounds like pure jealousy to me.
    GO STEELERS!!

  70. Scott in Bwk says: And how about this: If the player who gets hit by the illegal hit is injured and out for any period of time, the player who committed the foul is suspended for the same amount of time.
    Neither of James Harrision’s hits were flagged, so according to the officials on the field, neither of his hits were illegal. But I’m assuming you mean you want the refs to go back and watch the game and throw flags after the fact. Wonder if they will be able to correct missed pass-interference calls or holding calls? I don’t think the league should look back at a game that was already played and dole out punishments after the fact.
    But in going along with your theory, when Ray Lewis broke Rashard Mendenhall’s collar bone and Mendenhall was knocked out for the season, Lewis should have been suspended for the entire season, too? That play wasn’t flagged, but according to you, it caused an injury. You can’t start suspending players for other players injuries.
    megabeast37215—you are right. They get paid millions of dollars to play a game for a living. They know the risks and they all willingly accept those risks for their paycheck.

  71. @ccoolahan14
    Sam’s Club has tissues on sale this week and you can buy them in bulk you crybaby. I can’t believe all of the crying about the refs. The fix is in people. Waaaaa.

  72. I suggest the players who don’t want to be hit quit and go back to there job as car salesman, etc. Sure there are cheap shots but most of these hits are part of the game. Seriously, they are turning the NFL into the NBA with all the subjective calls that can dramatically change the game. guys launch there bodies all the time to make plays and sometimes helmets hit.

  73. This will be short: I’m 54 years old, my son played in the NFL. I can’t believe how *ussyfied the NFL, Sports and the people in the world have become.
    Some hits are unavoidable and to start this crap is ridiculous. That’s why this country has lost it’s balls and why we are being stripped and dumbed down to a has been ” World Power”.
    What a shame !!!!!!!

  74. The Browns are becoming the team that they need to be. They’re becoming monsters, one TJ Ward and Peyton Hillis at a time. The day is coming where the Browns will come to town and ruin your franchise and the unlucky teams in the division will have so few players left they’ll worse off than an expansion team. There will be Steelers and Ravens twitching facedown on the frozen field of Browns stadium.
    Go Browns.
    Best franchise in the world, best fans in the world.

  75. Some of you guys must have been spectators at the Forum in a past life and were rooting for the lions.
    I don’t care how much you’re paid, you’re NOT being paid to put your life in that kind of jeopardy, unless you’re with military or the police or fire department and those guys are certainly under appreciated. These guys have short enough careers (Most don’t even qualify for an NFL pension) without having to spend the rest of it paralyzed or spending a lot of money to take care of themselves long after their careers are over. Don’t give me any crap about how they make millions and millions because most of them make less than $250,000 after taxes and they don’t last more than a couple of years.
    I don’t mind watching a hard hit game but I’ve seen guys take out an opponent and ruin their careers with cheap shots that their coaches not only condoned but taught and encouraged (Can’t forget Roy Williams and his horse collar tackles that put several guys out for the season). Contrary to what some people say, you can make a good tackle without using your helmet as a weapon. You might hit a guy with your helmet with a tackle but that doesn’t mean that you have to take a dead run at the guy and try to use it as a weapon and the same goes with hitting a defenseless receiver with a shot to the chin with your forearm.

  76. let’s get this straight, destoying a player is NOT part of the game. And when it intentional etc it should be punished. While these hits may me be (or not) “legal”, they were certainly cheap shots that don’t belong in this or any other sport. suspend each of them for at least three games and double the suspension and fine for subsequent dirty hits. it won’t ruin the game it will only improvie it.

  77. 4-12, Steelers at the bottom of the division this year.
    Oh wait. Guess you PFT guys were totally wrong and now you’re crying that we have the best LBers in the league. If you don’t like hard hits, you should play 2 hand touch or some variation of that.
    God it’s good to be a Steelers fan =)

  78. Why not adopt a system similar to soccer with yellow cards and red cards? I know this country is typically anti-anythingnotUSA, but I think it would work. Minor helmet to helmet hit is a yellow card and 3-4 yellow cards in a season is a one game suspension. A red card is anything malicious (like the Harrison hit) and warrants ejection and you miss the next game as well.
    Any reasonable people opposed, I’d love to hear why. Knuckleheads need not respond with “why do you hate the stillers, they’re great, football is tough.”

  79. Haha, what’s up with the Steelers fans claiming this must all be coming from Bengals and Browns fans because the Steelers always win and they always lose, Browns beat the Steelers last year and Bengals swept them! Don’t get too cocky up there in Pittsburgh, you haven’t faced the Bengals yet this year, and no matter how much they suck, they are built to beat the AFC North. There is a difference between good football and apes on hgh trying to take people’s heads off for a banana after the game.

  80. Oh yeah,Merriweather deserves to be hit with a huge fine AND a suspension. Harrison and the Steelers have always been dirty players,period. Does anyone really think a $10,000 fine is anything to a player making millions? nope,doesnt touch them. Hit them where it hurts: sit them a few games or at least one. Come on,NFL, DO IT!

  81. when they start suspending players for these hits, I’m done watching. how do you even make these hits illegal, and then allow these pussy little players on offense cut a man down at the knees becuase they aren’t man enough to block them the right way!!!

  82. The NFL has already ruled the first hit completely legal and Harrison led with his HANDS on the second hit.
    So stop sitting there in your little dresses complaining about a full contact sport because you don’t like the Steelers. I suggest you lobby your wussy team owners to do more to sign great players like Harrison.

  83. It’s no surprise that good ol’ Belicheat has coached up Meriweather to attempt to injure other players in the tradition of Rodney Harrison. Can the Patriots win without cheating? Doubt it.

  84. I can’t wait until they turn the nfl into the NFFL(National Flag Football League). No hits on any one or else your suspended.

  85. Merriweather should get suspended for having an awful year. Darrius Butler can join him.

  86. Leading with the helmet = not looking at your target. If you can’t see the target, you are leading with the helmet. Harrision and Dunta Robinson were leading with the helmet the whole way. Both ducked their head at the last moment to use the top of the helmet as a weapon.
    Hit a WR in the ribs, side, shoulders, hips, heck flip ’em if they are air borne, but the head shots are going to paralyze someone sooner or later. Lead with the shoulder and nail ’em in the chest. That’s football.
    I don’t want penalties called during the game. That would be taking away from the game. They should review the plays during the week and then hand out suspensions.

  87. Of these hits the only one I saw was Merriweather’s hit on Heap and that was clearly unacceptable, it pretty much looked intentional, adv it looked like he tried it previously on another play, he just missed…

  88. I love the mentality of many displayed in this thread.. if you don’t want to see players knocked senseless and rendered unconscious you must be some sort of wuss. Its a trait most exorbitantly displayed by those from the dreary, decaying, rusting city the Burgh.
    Newsflash, Harrison is a dirty cheap shot artist.. has been for far too long but with a black and gold uniform on somehow this type of football is considered hard nosed and tough. Id like to see a guy like that try a sport like Rugby.. see how long he would last.

  89. There is nothing wrong with any of these hits, your supposed to separate the receiver from the ball and all cases that happened. silverback was one k’o from a very rare hat-trick 3 k’os in one game would have been sweet, just don’t dare touch the qb’s ,we need them to make the games more interesting.

  90. YepHello says:
    October 18, 2010 3:42 PM
    Haha, what’s up with the Steelers fans claiming this must all be coming from Bengals and Browns fans because the Steelers always win and they always lose, Browns beat the Steelers last year and Bengals swept them! Don’t get too cocky up there in Pittsburgh, you haven’t faced the Bengals yet this year, and no matter how much they suck, they are built to beat the AFC North. There is a difference between good football and apes on hgh trying to take people’s heads off for a banana after the game.
    Yes but you left out of your little tirade, that this is a new season and if the Bengals are built to beat the AFC NORTH, then hows come they DID NOT beat the Browns this year and barely beat the Ravens. If not for a couple BS calls they would have lost to the Ravens as well, and I am a Steeler fan, but a football fan as well, Do Not see the Bengals taking the North this year, If you can not even handle the Browns that the Steelers and Ravens both did.

  91. jamaltimore, usually I disagree with most of your comments, but I must say we’re on the same page. Must be because our teams have great defenses 🙂

  92. Today’s helmets are so over done they can be used as a weapon instead of a protective device, like thigh pads or knee pads. Why don’t they go back to using the leather helmets like they had in the mid forty’s to soften the impact of “bumping heads” during a play. Then let’s see how many street thugs turned respectable professional football players will employ head to head hits to legally try to kill or permanently disable someone. Head to head hits rarely occur, and almost never occur on purpose, in rugby…

  93. So was this comment that I posted almost two hours ago deliberately censored or was it just another in an increasingly bizarre string of lost posts?
    ———————————————–
    No, I’m sure Anderson doesn’t care what fans think of him. No one in the league cares what the fans think about anything. They’ve made that more than clear on countless subjects. I’m fine with taking a stronger stand on helmet hits if it’s logical and evenly applied. But I still maintain that it’s beyond hypocritical for these corporate hacks to pretend they care about player safety while they’re lengthening the season–and the injury potential–but only increasing the roster by ONE man, while they’ve cut funding to research on spinal cord injuries, and while they’re trying to eliminate player health benefits. The ONLY thing that matters to the NFL is the possibility of Congressional oversight.
    I don’t know how they’re going to ban ALL hits with helmets unless they find a way to detach players’ heads from their bodies. Let’s say you launch with your shoulder. You’re wearing a big round helmet. So’s he. It’s likely that when your shoulders connect those two big round objects atop your shoulders will connect to some degree. Instead of posturing for the cameras, the league could simply enforce the rules already in place and work on creating more efficient helmets.
    As for those of you ranting about Harrison, I had a problem with his hit on Massaquoi, but it certainly wasn’t worse than the hits delivered in some of the other games. Typically, you guys think the Steelers deserve bigger fines and bigger punishments than everyone else. Whine on.

  94. ” Steeler fans get criticized like they were scum of the earth. People should look in the mirror. You wish you had the class of the average Steeler fan. Sounds like pure jealousy to me.”
    Yeah. we all wish we had the “class” of the Steeler fans who cheered their rapist when he came back on the field.
    “I don’t think the league should look back at a game that was already played and dole out punishments after the fact.”
    It happens every week when the fines are announced. Try to keep up.
    “Steeler haters/bottom-feeder s are always looking for an advantage when it comes to the Steelers. What’s the matter? You wimps afraid of our team? Losers.”
    Nope, not afraid of your team. But our wives and girlfriends should be afraid of your rapist, uh, quaterback.

  95. If the NFL is serious about Helmet to Helmet hitting, let them start suspending players and force the team to play with one less player for the rest of the game. If it happens late in the game, make the susppention for two or more games. If a second player does the same then he is outta there and the team now plays with only nine. This will stop helmet to helmet quick.

  96. The NFL has become a joke. I don’t care if the defender leads with his forearm. Are we playing professional football or is it flag football? If you are afraid to get hurt, DON’T PLAY FOOTBALL! The league has been taken over by a bunch of lawyers who like to write stupid, ridiculous, unenforceable rules and regulations just like the government does. It is no longer football. It’s now entertainment. The league has been taken to socialist mediocrity. Their dream, which appears to have come true, is to have all the teams end up at 8 wins and 8 losses. This way the dumb fans will keep watching their team on the boob tube right up to the 16th game of the season. Tv revenues will stay high and the NFL will make billions of dollars. The refs will orchestrate the games in many cases, especially the big name teams with the big name stars. They will make sure those games are kept close and down to the wire. This way the dumb fans will stay glued to their seats right down to the final tick of the game clock. The NFL has to make their sponsors happy so the NFL can charge more for the sponsors commercials to air. GET THE PICTURE ANYONE?

  97. @YepHello
    Thanks for the reminder. My day was going really well today with the Steelers winning and the Ravens & Cowgirls losing. And now you remind me that the Steelers get to play the Bungals twice yet this year. Yippee, wonderful news. The Bungals have 1 AFC North title in the past 5 years. They really are built to dominate the division.
    Oh and you lost to the other shitty team from OHIO in the same division. How is that domination? See that’s the problem with comments from Bungal fans. Living in the past? How about that choke job against the Jets and their rookie QB in the playoffs? More Bungal domination? Enjoy battling Cleveland for the cellar of the AFCN.

  98. Some of the comments on this story have further confirmed that my view that American football appears to exist only to satisfy some mild form of blood lust. Supporters of Jackson, Meriweather and Robinson, I ask you, what are your views on the rights of individuals to maintain for themselves the integrity and well-being of their own bodies? Are you really so callow and cynical to place the ‘happiness’ which you gain by seeing players like the ones mentioned, ahead of the long-term pain the victims of said players have to suffer? If so, I wonder if you have really thought about your opposition to tougher penalties. You will likely enjoy many more years of sitting comfortably in your living room, whereas the past, current and future victims of Jackson and Company will in all likelihood experience debilitating injuries that will prevent them for experiencing the things you will take for granted. Yes, players expose themselves voluntarily to the dangers of sports. Yes, they do receive handsome salaries. But the right to a healthy body and mind is not something you can readily quantify. Also, if I were one of the players fingered for their actions yesterday, I would not want supporters like you. It tells me that you are willing to endorse some of the most base instincts in human mentality. This means that you would not come to my defense if I WERE THE VICTIM of a cheap shot artist. Let me confess that I am a regular NFL watcher among other sports. But what happened yesterday, goes beyond the tolerable. What does this say about our society if we cannot even agree about the unacceptable behaviour that we witnessed? Instead of confronting the ethics of the situation ahead, we hide behind conspiracies. Shame on you, shame on us, shame on me.

  100. @birdmancometh …
    What you’re suggesting involves judgment calls–incidental and egregious contact would be handled differently. In the last couple of years, the NFL has acted to remove judgment calls from officiating. For example, we no longer have the 5-yard incidental contact penalty vs. the 15-yard personal-foul penalty for touching/grabbing the facemask. Now there’s only the harsher penalty. That relieves the officials of having to decide whether contact was incidental or intentional. That’s also the thought process behind the odd rules regarding catches. Officials no longer make judgments about receivers maintaining control. If they don’t come back up with the ball, it doesn’t count.
    I doubt they’ll now adopt a new rule requiring more judgment calls on something so controversial.

  101. For defenseless receivers I agree sanctions shouyld be taken. Once they become a runner, let them play football. What do you bleeding hearts want Professional Flag Football? It’s bad enough there is a 5 yard force field around the prima donna quarterbacks. How much more kindler and gentler do you want a “contact” sport top be? Y’all need to sober up. They get paid obsene money and they know the chances they take and the possibility of hits. Its part of the game.

  102. None of you whiners actually watched the Harrison/Cribbs hit more than once or twice. Cribbs is the one who lowered his head. Harrison was already going straight on. All you pussies call him a dirty player when he’s just a badazz who plays his position better than most. The league even called it a legal hit.

  103. zzz92 you are smoking serious drugs if you think your contribution made one iota of sense. The NFL is about as likely to copy soccer as NFL fans are to switch to watching soccer. Go take another bong hit.
    Prager, I would love to see what you would do in the very, VERY unlikely event a cute college girl follows you from bar to bar and tells you she not only wants you to come back to her place, but that she’s also wearing a “Down to f**k” T-shirt on while she drapes herself all over you in front of 200 people. If she cries rape later, (or rather, if her FRIENDS cry rape to the cops while she says she has no idea what even happened) you’ll wish you had a signed and dated permission slip because that’s the only missing thing in the long list of green-means-go lights she gave you all night.
    If that’s rape, then I’ve raped every one of the dozens women I’ve ever been with because I’ve had a hell of a lot less green light signals given to me by each of them than that anonymous (How convenient!) chick gave the football star she wanted to trophy. And as I’m sure the same applies to you, you’re a rapist, too, bub.

  104. I believe that any questionable hit that causes the other player to miss time, including that game, should result in the player’s suspension for the same period of time. i.e., if the hittee is out for the season, so is the hitter.

  105. What a bunch of sissies wearing pink underwear… This is a hitting sport it is why they play the game. They are taught from Pop Warner to the pros to smash your opponent in the mouth. If you do not want to hit or be hit go and play that sissy so called sport called Golf. There you can wear pink and no one give a sh*t. Imagine changing these type of rules in Hockey. Where I guess there are no so called thugs. That is totally a racial slur…

  106. The problem I see is going to be inconsistant enforcement. Similar to the way some receivers are permitted to push off more than others. Another case is going to be when runners approaching a tackler suddenly dip their heads and plow ahead. Who do you penalize, the runner or the defender.
    Talking abour rules, when are we going to get rid of that farce that permits QBs from dumping the ball because a defense did their job.

  108. Sissies, pussies, crybabies. I wish that the NFL had a program where the players could come to your house and deliver a helmet to helmet or a forearm to your chin and let’s see how many of you continue to talk smack about them.

  109. DasRundeEi typifies the ignorant fan who is bewildered that we should actually trust in the toughness of the men playing the game. The reality is most of the guys who get these hits will survive them reasonably well.

  110. Mike Dayl says: DasRundeEi typifies the ignorant fan who is bewildered that we should actually trust in the toughness of the men playing the game. The reality is most of the guys who get these hits will survive them reasonably well.
    Mike, if you have read my comments more carefully, you would have noticed that they referenced the rights of the individual to a healthy body and mind. Let us assume (which is not for certain by any stretch) that the majority of the players can absorb questionable hits like the ones delivered over the weekend. But would this condition justify that even one player were to suffer devastating injuries (or worse) simply because the majority of players would accept such hits? Of course not. The rights of an individual should not be held hostage to some vague, undefined notion of majority rule, for which you have failed to produce supporting evidence. Who says that “most of the guys who gets these hits will survive reasonably well?” You? What is your definition of surviving well?
    This points to the second failure of your argument, its inability to account for future outcomes. It might well be the case that the majority of guys as you say will accept the physical consequences of playing today. But will they make that same choice if they had foresight about the future outcomes of their decisions? Yes, by definition, we cannot foresee the future. But we can make reasonable predictions based on past outcomes. They in turn tell us that hits of that variety seen over the weekend can cause serious harm, which the players rather than you, will have to bear. Once again, the number of affected players now or in the future does not matter.
    I would feel pretty bad if my actions (such as defending headhunters) or inactions (failing to speak out against them) would compound the damage that they cause, even if my behaviour were to impact only one player and his rights. Based on some of the comments in this forum, this makes me a minority.

  111. “Targeting the Head”
    should be the Penalty
    which includes anything to strike the opponents head, knee, helmet, forearm, shoulder.

  112. James Harrison 75,000 fine, no suspension. That’s 0.009 of his annual salary, or about $440 to the average joe.
    Miami players are already buying their replacement underwear for this Sunday’s match-up. Nice!
    Edgy1957, I’ll gladly take a helment-to-helmet for a $1 mil+ a year salary. And we’re not saying the PLAYERS are pussies, we’re saying YOU are a pussy along with everyone else that wants the NFL to be flag football so you all can watch it at your smoke-free bar drinking your O’Douls or Shirley Temples.

  113. One thing that gets me is that college football had this kind of debate 100 years ago when Teddy Roosevelt put his foot down after there were so many incidents and deaths due to the style of play (and it’s one of the reasons why they outlawed one of the most dangerous formation, the flying wedge) and he even threatened to shut down the game if they didn’t take measures to clean up the game. I’m going to guess that many of those who have the blood lust here have relatives that had as much blood lust back then and were just as opposed to seeing their game changed to make the game safer for everyone so more people weren’t maimed or killed (Back at a time when the average life expectancy was no where near what it is today). Besides outlawing certain formations, they added scrimmaging and changed the game from 2 45 minute halves to 4 15 minute quarters and other pussy rules like the forward pass. Some how college football survived and even got even more popular despite the gloom and doom from people who threatened to stop watching it.

  114. HYPOCRITES!!!!!! I just got done watching an video compelation of Dick Butkus hits, set to some hiphop/rap song called “Another body hits the floor” or something like that.
    Anyway the video was AWESOME and it was produced by…wait for it… that’s right the NFL.
    SO they are selling videos/dvds of great hits to the public but now are going to fine those same players for making the hit.
    Forget it…I will start watching the UFL. The talents isn’t as good but at least they still play the game the way it was intended. Soo long No Fun League!!

  115. So does this mean the league will be reviewing every single play of every game looking for helmet to helmet contact?
    I mean that’s the only way to catch every single occurrence right?

  116. people are acting as if these rules havent been structured into the game already for years, they arent changing anything, what they are doing is striking down harder, giving suspensions to those who intentionally go helmet to helmet because fining them doesnt do anything to the player, taking the game from the player does more than what a fine could ever do to them.

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