Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Helmet hits a part of the game

The NFL decided to go tough on NFL players who commit "dangerous" or "flagrant" hits by suspending them.  Before this players were either fined or ejected for committing these hits.  More specifically it's about the recent helmet-to-helmet hits.

While I agree that players must be protected.  Helmet-to-helmet hits to defenseless players need to continue to be flagged and players fined as long as there was malicious intent.  But with that being said, it's just a huge gray area.  It's hard to tell if a player is maliciously hitting a player to hurt or injure them or if they're just doing their job.

These hits are a part of the game.  Just because you fine or suspend somebody doesn't mean they're going to suddenly stop.  Sure, you can protect players, which is important and a must, but these hits will continue to happen whether we want them to or not.

The NFL is a difficult and dangerous job.  In other words, it's a privilege to play in this league.  Players know the risks with strapping on that helmet.  A lot of people risk their lives with their jobs every single day.  Firefighters know they could die running into a house fire, power line operators know they could be electrocuted at any point.  Same goes with the NFL and taking a bone crushing hit.

What about baseball?  You could say pitchers should be suspended for hitting a batter in the head.  We don't know if they did it with intent or not.  The same goes with the NFL.

I do agree they should be illegal and something needs to be done.  But will suspending players make it stop?  It won't.  Helmet-to-helmet hits are a part of the game.  Players know the risks of playing in this league and taking excruciating hits.  Most players understand that.  The NFL needs to understand that too.

1 comment:

Hostpph said...

ouch! that must have really hurt for both of them, the blue jersey guy and the other guy's neck for sure