Why the "Devestating Hits" rule is a non-issue

What a week in football headlines.

Not sure if you’ve heard or not, but the NFL will now suspend or eject players who perform helmet-to-helmet hits.

To me, it’s no big deal.

Wait a second…don’t react just yet to my non-reaction. If you’re going to reply to this, don’t use the stupid hyperboles and exaggerations. They sound like this;

“They’re going to start playing flag football next!”

“It’s basically two-hand touch!”

“They’re going to lose fans!”

Now honestly, how many of you believe any of those?! Come on, raise your hand…I didn’t think so.

Fact is; the NFL hasn’t really changed any rules. They’ve basically said, if you lead with the crown of your helmet, launch yourself at another player’s head, or any other illegal hit, they have the right to eject or suspend you.

Guess what NFC East fans; these hits have been illegal for years now. And the game has gotten nothing but more popular yet more deadly. The only significant change is now you can be suspended. This is no different than if the police start cracking down on speeding tickets by suspending your license. You know it’s illegal; you’ve shown you don’t care about the fines, so we increase the penalty.

The rules haven’t changed, the penalties have. Stop crying about how this isn’t real football, the players SHOULD’VE been playing like this for years now!

The truth is the NFL is trying to keep the health of their players in mind. I don’t think any reasonable fan thinks otherwise. I’m not going to touch on how the NFL are hypocrites because they want to extend the season, or how they sell “NFL’s Greatest Hits” DVDs, that’s too much politics and marketing for my taste.

The real danger is that NFL defensive players have a sense of security with their helmets. They put that helmet on and it’s like putting on a weapon, and that’s not what the helmet is designed for. It’s designed for safety, your shoulder pads are your weapons. Mike Ditka put it the best, if you want these players to stop launching head-first? Then take away those facemasks. Those pretty boys won’t hit like that then! (I’m paraphrasing).

The NFL is asking players not to drop their heads when they tackle. As in, tackle with your facemask, not the crown of your helmet. They’re asking for wrap up tackles that lead with their shoulders. Ray Lewis might complain, but he has some of the best wrap-up tackling in the game today. You know who use to lead with his shoulder 95% of the time? The late-great Sean Taylor. You can perform hard hits without them being illegal.

So stop overreacting NFL fans, matter of fact, watch football Sunday, and let’s see how much really changes. I’m confident that if anyone does get suspended, we won’t be arguing why, we all know illegal hits when we see them; it’s just time for them to go away.