Illegal Hits

by Scott Simone

The Date: August 12, 1978. Then Patriots QB Steve Grogan drops back to pass. Darryl Stingley, a Patriots WR, cuts up the middle. Grogan lets one fly. It’s a little out of reach for Stingley, who tries leaping for the grab. That’s where his career ended, and his life would be forever altered. A helmet-to-helmet hit broke Stingley’s neck, leaving him a quadriplegic.

No flags were thrown. No suspensions handed down. No fines levied.

This is the exact situation the NFL is trying to avoid with its increased enforcement of illegal hits, especially head to head hits.

(The hit in question.)

Although Jack Tatum, who laid the hit on Stingley, was demonized after, he actually did nothing wrong; well, according to the league at that time. At the time of this unfortunate incident, no rules were on the books for illegal hits or helmet-to-helmet contact.

In 1996, the NFL instituted a rule change that prohibited hits initiated by the defender with his helmet or targeted at the head of an offensive player. The penalty was classified as a personal foul and resulted in both a 15-yard penalty and subsequent fines from the NFL. But recently, it seems, the NFL has begun to enforce this rule more strictly than in the past. This, in turn, has led to an abundance of defensive players complaining about the rule.

(James Harrison contemplated retirement after the NFL levied a $75,000 fine for what they deemed an illegal hit.)

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison threatened to retire, citing that he could no longer play effectively. Eagles safety Quintin Mikell thinks the league might as well enforce flag football rules. "Maybe we should go out there and play seven-on-seven and let the receivers run around and catch the ball and just grab a flag or something. It's frustrating. But those are the rules," says Mikell in an interview with the Philadelphia Daily News.

Kurt Coleman, a rookie safety for the Eagles, told the Philadelphia Daily News, "It's a physical game, that's why we love it. That's why America loves football. It's a man's sport. It's tough to say you can't hit somebody as hard, or you can't hit them in a certain way.

(Mikell is just one of many defensive players who oppose the new enforcement of the rules.)

But the league isn’t trying to turn the NFL into a flag football league. Instead, they are doing what they can to help protect its players. The league isn’t condemning defensive players for hitting hard. They are coming out against illegal and cheap hits that have no part in the game. There’s a difference between hitting hard and trying to send a message. When a receiver is in the air, unprotected, with the ball sailing over their head, there is no reason to have a defensive player, leading with their head, hit the receiver above the shoulders.

Take it from Packers QB Aaron Rodgers. In an interview with Bob Costas, he said, “It’s an interesting situation. You have to evaluate each play kind of separately. Some of the hits are unavoidable. There’s collisions. It’s a collision sport. It’s a violent sport. I applaud the NFL in looking for ways to eliminate those unnecessary, malicious hits. I don’t think they really have a place in the game.”

(Just a big 'ol pile on Rodgers.)

And, in last weekend’s games, it seems that players are getting the message, at least for now. No penalties, fines, or suspensions came as a result of illegal, or helmet-to-helmet contact.