Schlereth Shreds the NFL for Fining Hard Hits

[Crash]

At least part of this is posturing on Goodell's part. He sees the writing on the wall with the upcoming labor dispute, and he knows that player safety is going to be one of the key issues.

Now he thinks he's found an issue where he can look tough on player safety all while spinning safety issues back on the players.

 

[YGBFKM]

Pissing off half the league with indiscriminate fines should do wonders for negotiations.

 

[Crash]

Pissing off half the league with indiscriminate fines should do wonders for negotiations.

I meant more posturing for the public and media, which are predisposed to fall on his and the owner's side anyway, as opposed to posturing for the players and the union, which fans and media are going to blame if there's no NFL season in 2011.

 

[I Should Coco]

It seems like simple logic that the last thing you'd want to do if you're a 260-pound man getting ready to run full-speed into another 240-pound man is put your head right in the middle of that collision, but that's exactly what most of these guys do.

Check out the players' weights on this 1979 Chicago Bears roster:

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/chi/1979_roster.htm

The heaviest guys were 266 and 267. I think there's a half-dozen who are over 250, all linemen. Hell, one of the starting DTs, the great Alan Page, is listed at 245.

It's such a bigger and faster league now that the injuries are going to keep piling up, until they find a way to build better helmets, pads, etc.

 

[Double Down]

I find it sort of strange that so many people outside the game are the ones who want to make decisions on behalf of those in the game.

I know this is going to come across as blaming the victim, but there is a reason Joshua Cribbs got knocked out, and it wasn't 100 percent on James Harrison. Let me preface it by saying intentional spearing is bull**** and cannot be tolerated. However...

What happened to Cribbs was partially the fault of Joshua Cribbs. YOU DO NOT CUT BACK INTO THE FLOW OF PURSUIT. Or, if you do so, you do it at your own peril. It's a bit like chasing the puck into the corner in hockey.

You know who is mostly responsible for Desean Jackson getting killed? Kevin ****ing Kolb. You cannot throw that ball and let your receiver run a route against zone coverage like that, or he's almost always going to get killed. Seems to me that offensive coordinators didn't used to send skinny fast guys like Jackson over the middle 20 years ago anyway, in part because they knew it might get them decapitated. Jerry Rice used to do it, but he was smart enough that he could find the hole in defenses, catch the ball and fall down. It took a special breed of receiver to run those crossing routes. Now offensive coordinators don't give a crap. Everyone is looking for an edge, and when offensive players are put in peril, it's always the fault of the defender. Really? How about all the awful quarterbacks leading guys into trouble?

There is a little blame to go around. Schlereth is right about the Meriweather hit. That was the worst of the bunch, because it was clearly an intended head shot. The others were just violent collisions that make you cringe, but they're always going to be part of the game unless you want to just make it entirely about offense and say a linebacker can't hit a guy too hard if a wide receiver carrying the ball like a loaf of bread decided he should be able to cut back into the flow of traffic and expect to get tackled nicely.

 

[Crash]

It seems like simple logic that the last thing you'd want to do if you're a 260-pound man getting ready to run full-speed into another 240-pound man is put your head right in the middle of that collision, but that's exactly what most of these guys do.

Check out the players' weights on this 1979 Chicago Bears roster:

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/chi/1979_roster.htm

The heaviest guys were 266 and 267. I think there's a half-dozen who are over 250, all linemen. Hell, one of the starting DTs, the great Alan Page, is listed at 245.

It's such a bigger and faster league now that the injuries are going to keep piling up, until they find a way to build better helmets, pads, etc.

Exactly. But the problem isn't just the equipment. In fact, better equipment is likely only going to reinforce this type of play. If Riddell comes out with a concussion-preventing helmet tomorrow, that's going to reinforce the belief that leading with the head isn't all that dangerous.

Players from the bottom levels to the top need re-education in how to tackle, how to initiate contact, etc. without leading with the head. Like I said, it seems simple that putting your head right in the middle of a 500-pound collision isn't a good idea. Yet that's exactly what these guys are doing. It's dangerous, it's getting increasingly dangerous, and while Goodell is extremely hypocritical in addressing it in this manner, at least it's a step in the right direction. At some point, they've got to do something. "Football is a dangerous game" isn't a valid excuse anymore, and I don't think we need it to reach somebody getting permanently paralyzed or worse to realize that.

 

[YGBFKM]

You know who is mostly responsible for Desean Jackson getting killed? Kevin ****ing Kolb. You cannot throw that ball and let your receiver run a route against zone coverage like that, or he's almost always going to get killed. Seems to me that offensive coordinators didn't used to send skinny fast guys like Jackson over the middle 20 years ago anyway, in part because they knew it might get them decapitated.

I said this about Jackson and his skinny receiving ilk on the week 6 thread, but Kevin Kolb isn't calling the plays. The responsibility for protecting the smaller players falls on the head coaches and OCs.

 

[Double Down]

You know who is mostly responsible for Desean Jackson getting killed? Kevin ****ing Kolb. You cannot throw that ball and let your receiver run a route against zone coverage like that, or he's almost always going to get killed. Seems to me that offensive coordinators didn't used to send skinny fast guys like Jackson over the middle 20 years ago anyway, in part because they knew it might get them decapitated.

I said this about Jackson and his skinny receiving ilk on the week 6 thread, but Kevin Kolb isn't calling the plays. The responsibility for protecting the smaller players falls on the head coaches and OCs.

Absolutely. But they are most worried about their own jobs.

 

[Captain_Kirk]

Don't see where Robinson's hit on Jackson merited a fine (or next week a suspension).

An overreaction on the part of the NFL.

Keep this up fellas, and we'll be watching flag football or two hand touch (but not to the head of course).

 

[outofplace]

Schlereth nailed it. Too bad the poster child is Harrison, a thug who found the exact wrong thing to say about his hits.

 

[Batman]

Don't see where Robinson's hit on Jackson merited a fine (or next week a suspension).

An overreaction on the part of the NFL.

Keep this up fellas, and we'll be watching flag football or two hand touch (but not to the head of course).

I'm not even sure it warranted a flag, to be honest with you. Robinson hit him in the shoulder. The impact of the collision was what caused the helmet to helmet part.

 

[proudpittsburgher]

Don't see where Robinson's hit on Jackson merited a fine (or next week a suspension).

An overreaction on the part of the NFL.

Keep this up fellas, and we'll be watching flag football or two hand touch (but not to the head of course).

I'm not even sure it warranted a flag, to be honest with you. Robinson hit him in the shoulder. The impact of the collision was what caused the helmet to helmet part.

That was the cleanest hit of the bunch, which says something, that the cleanest hit was the most devestating. Neither of the Harrison hits were even penalized, and the Merriweather hit, for all of the huffing and puffing on Monday, easily deserved a suspension, but only got a fine. The only problem here is the inconsistency and the subjectivity of the rulings.

 

[Twoback]

Also, interesting that Schlereth brings up that the NFL says he's not eligible for disability payments, despite 20 NFL-related surgeries. It's a crime how the NFL throws its ex-players on the medical scrap heap.

He kind of wants it both ways, then.
He doesn't care that players are getting maimed, but he's complaining about his medical coverage? Hypocrisy.
(Also ridiculous that someone who raised a kid playing a non-contact game like MLB could ridicule a more physically demanding game like soccer.).

 

[Crash]

You know who is mostly responsible for Desean Jackson getting killed? Kevin ****ing Kolb. You cannot throw that ball and let your receiver run a route against zone coverage like that, or he's almost always going to get killed. Seems to me that offensive coordinators didn't used to send skinny fast guys like Jackson over the middle 20 years ago anyway, in part because they knew it might get them decapitated.

I said this about Jackson and his skinny receiving ilk on the week 6 thread, but Kevin Kolb isn't calling the plays. The responsibility for protecting the smaller players falls on the head coaches and OCs.

On top of that, the league's made it so difficult to cover anyone 1-on-1, with all the 5-yard contact rules, etc., that most teams play zones, which lend themselves to these types of collisions. The Harrison-Massaquoi hit was during a zone blits, with a 300-pound guy dropping into coverage and a 180-pound guy going over the middle. It was a pretty perfect storm.

Your point remains solid, but it should be noted that Harrison is about 240-250, not 300.

 

[Batman]

You know who is mostly responsible for Desean Jackson getting killed? Kevin ****ing Kolb. You cannot throw that ball and let your receiver run a route against zone coverage like that, or he's almost always going to get killed. Seems to me that offensive coordinators didn't used to send skinny fast guys like Jackson over the middle 20 years ago anyway, in part because they knew it might get them decapitated.

I said this about Jackson and his skinny receiving ilk on the week 6 thread, but Kevin Kolb isn't calling the plays. The responsibility for protecting the smaller players falls on the head coaches and OCs.

On top of that, the league's made it so difficult to cover anyone 1-on-1, with all the 5-yard contact rules, etc., that most teams play zones, which lend themselves to these types of collisions. The Harrison-Massaquoi hit was during a zone blits, with a 300-pound guy dropping into coverage and a 180-pound guy going over the middle. It was a pretty perfect storm.

Steve Young made a great point about that on Monday night. He basically called most of today's players incompetent, saying they didn't know how to run a route against zone coverage. They run a man-to-man route against a zone defense, get lit up and then wonder how it happened. He also called out the QBs for not being able to throw passes well enough to protect the receivers.

 

[outofplace]

Also, interesting that Schlereth brings up that the NFL says he's not eligible for disability payments, despite 20 NFL-related surgeries. It's a crime how the NFL throws its ex-players on the medical scrap heap.

He kind of wants it both ways, then.
He doesn't care that players are getting maimed, but he's complaining about his medical coverage? Hypocrisy.

No, he is saying that the NFL is being hypocritical in saying that it is trying to protect the players, then not giving a **** once they are done playing.

 

[GoochMan]

Also, interesting that Schlereth brings up that the NFL says he's not eligible for disability payments, despite 20 NFL-related surgeries. It's a crime how the NFL throws its ex-players on the medical scrap heap.

He kind of wants it both ways, then.
He doesn't care that players are getting maimed, but he's complaining about his medical coverage? Hypocrisy.

No, he is saying that the NFL is being hypocritical in saying that it is trying to protect the players, then not giving a **** once they are done playing.

Thank you, OOP, for saying this. I would have thought it was pretty self evident.

 

[Twoback]

The NFL negotiates this with its players association. If the medical care post-career is not what it should be, not what it needs to be, the NFLPA deserves at least equal blame.
Throwing it ALL on the NFL as hypocrisy is ridiculous.
Does anyone even consider that the NFL would like to limit its post-career medical costs by not having so many guys roll limp away from the game with canes?

 

[cranberry]

The NFL negotiates this with its players association. If the medical care post-career is not what it should be, not what it needs to be, the NFLPA deserves at least equal blame.
Throwing it ALL on the NFL as hypocrisy is ridiculous.
Does anyone even consider that the NFL would like to limit its post-career medical costs by not having so many guys roll limp away from the game with canes?

Equal? You forget that the PA is the party in the negotiation that asks for better coverage and the NFL is the party in the negotiation that says, "No, you can't have better coverage."

 

[Crash]

Worst part about the NFLPA is that it's going to get steamrolled in the upcoming negotiations. Gene Upshaw sold the players down the river, public opinion is going to fall, inexplicably, on the side of the owners, and the players will bow down under pressure from the public and the owners.

It's one thing no one can argue baseball has gotten right. Labor disputes or not, at least the players stand up for themselves.