With the subject of low hits becoming a common theme in the 2013 NFL season -- and the real games haven’t even started yet -- it makes sense to get the views of players regarding an important aspect of player safety that may not be addressed until March 2014.
On Wednesday’s PFT Live, Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly was asked about his views on the situation. Among other things, he said he’d gladly trade the ability to tackle offensive players low for a ban on cut blocks.
Then again, most linebackers would, since they typically have the size and strength to get a guy down with a normal form tackle. Smaller defensive players opt to chop the trees low, and taking out low hits would hamper their ability to make tackles.
But this isn’t about taking out all low tackles or cut blocks. Instead, defenseless players who currently are protected against hits to the head should be protected against hits to the knee. Other players shouldn’t be, at least for now.
Kuechly talked about all sorts of other things, including comparisons to Ray Lewis, the status of quarterback Cam Newton among franchise quarterbacks, and whether Kuechley would choose a Hall of Fame bust over a Super Bowl ring.