Thread: Urlacher upset with NFL flagrant hits policy

Originally Posted by JustWinBaby

There will be more knee injuries now, as more players start going low. Then again maybe this will bring back form tackling and make teams better tacklers, which has been a lost art in the NFL the past 20 years (not counting Tim Jennings).

while agree "form tackling" is missing and be glad to see some of that come back- HATE the idea of tackling , instead of hitting WR's at the sticks to stop First downs and chains moving.. i don't want WR's sitting at the Chains, not worrying about big hits ,but only a 'form tackle" after a catch and getting the first down, so the "D" fails and O's just go up/down the field because can't sperate the player from ball anymore, and just do 'form tackles"

Originally Posted by Nick

the only way they can make players not use their helmet, is to remove the face mask.

Or move to a softer shell helmet w/a single bar facemask(to help prevent a foot full of clete to the face). While their at it, lighten up the shoulder pads so when the D comes flying in theirs as much chance he dislocates his shoulder as their is any real damage to the O player; you'd see a lot more technique blocking and a lot let trying to declete someone.

NFL crackdown on violence: It doesn't add up

Unavoidable collisions can't be controlled

Matt Bowen Scouting the Bears October 21, 2010


Big collisions. Players laid out on the ground with the training staff peering over them. Concussions.

We see them weekly in a game played by professionals that is built — and driven — by speed and violence. But now the NFL wants to change this after three big hits Sunday. There have been fines and talk of suspensions and the now realization that the helmet has become the weapon of choice for players in the NFL.

Trying to limit big collisions is nice to talk about, but the controlled violence will always be there. We are talking about a league that markets players as modern day gladiators, rakes in monumental amounts of money, yet hands out fines for what they deem as malicious play. Throw in the idea of retired players, kept at a distance from medical benefits needed as a result of the same controlled violence we are talking about, and it doesn't add up.

I don't agree with a player launching himself into a defenseless receiver. Never have. On an overthrown ball or a tipped pass, there is no reason to drive the crown of your helmet into the facemask of an opposing player. That is a cheap brand of football and only will lead to injuries on a catastrophic scale – and it should be met with stiff punishment. Some coaches in the league want their defensive players to use violence to intimidate receivers, but the majority of the NFL doesn't support that style of play.


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What I am are talking about are the unavoidable collisions. The helmet placement that changes at the last second, delivering that unwanted blow to a receiver. The quick change of direction that forces a defender to drop his head. Part of the game. The NFL can't prevent that from happening.

The players aren't going to change the way they approach Sundays. Defensive football is based on reaction. No time to hesitate or think. Just play. No different here in Chicago in Lovie Smith's Cover-2 scheme. Drop to a landmark, set your feet and drive downhill hard on the receiver. Separate that player from the ball. Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs and Chris Harris are productive football players because they can play within the scheme of the defense and react to the quarterback. The speed of the game itself doesn't warrant a player reacting late. There is no time to pull up or try to move his helmet on impact.

I was the same way in my career. Don't think, just play. Read my keys and play ball. I welcomed the deep 15-yard dig route breaking in front of me. Play with the proper depth and react to the throw. The hit and the aftermath were unavoidable. Play without that aggressive style and we are talking about a completion, a first down and possible demotion from the starting lineup when grades were handed out on Monday morning in film review. I relied on that aggressive style of play to overcome other weaknesses in my game. Needed it to succeed and last in the NFL. Take that away and I was just a guy who wouldn't make the roster. If I received a fine, a FedEx letter in my locker on Wednesday morning, move on and do it again the following week.

The league's reaction to bad PR has always been fines. Go after player's wallets. Put a big dent in that paycheck. But it will never be enough to change the way a player attacks the game on Sundays. Even the idea of a suspension (which equals to the loss of an entire game check) isn't going to strike fear into the minds of the players. They aren't coached that way and know that if they let up, or think about head placement at the point of impact, the results will suffer. Punish the intentional helmet-to-helmet hits, but the unavoidable contact can't be controlled. It is around to stay.

After playing at Glenbard West and Iowa, Matt Bowen spent seven seasons in the NFL as a strong safety with the Rams, Packers, Redskins and Bills, including

NFL hits crackdown has Bears seething
bob legere

Bears players on Wednesday reacted angrily to the NFL's decision to crack down on what it considers dangerous hits.
The league fined Steelers linebacker James Harrison $75,000 Tuesday, and Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather and Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson each were fined $50,000 for what the league called dangerous and flagrant hits in last week's games. Players have been warned that, starting this weekend, helmet-to-helmet hits will be cause for suspension, even for first-time offenders.

It's all bull (blank) in my opinion,” Bears cornerback Charles Tillman said. “The league, they're all suits now. They don't know. They're making bad decisions for the game.”

The NFL has taken a tough stand on helmet-to-helmet hits for years, but Meriweather was the only fined player whose tackle involved helmet-to-helmet contact.

Robinson led with his shoulder and hit Jackson in the chest-shoulder area. There's no denying it was a frightening and violent collision, but it was not illegal, according to every one of the Bears players who spoke Wednesday.

“To me, that's good football,” said safety Chris Harris, who is known for his physical style of play. “I'm all for player safety. But our job as a defender is to jar the ball loose, separate the ballcarrier from the ball. If I can't get there to knock the ball down, I'm supposed to separate him from the ball. That's the way football's always been; that's just the game.

“For Dunta Robinson to get fined $50,000 for making a great football play is unheard of. It frustrates me. I totally understand the Meriweather hit; it was a bad play. But James Harrison, he's just making a football play.”

Even wide receiver Rashied Davis, whose position is often on the receiving end of some of the most violent hits, thinks the league might be overreacting to a weekend that saw more than its share of big hits.

“We all know what we signed up for when we started playing this game,” Davis said. “I know what the risks are; everybody does. I'm all for player safety and my safety and all of that, but at the same time, it's a rule that's very hard to enforce and everything is up to judgment. I don't think that most guys are out to hurt people.”

Players also criticized the league for its hypocrisy. NFL.com sells DVDs and photos that feature big hits, yet it fines the players who make those hits.
Now, officials have been gra
nted the power to eject players for those same flagrant hits that the league makes money from.
“It's a contact sport,” Tillman said. “It's physical. You know what you're getting into when you put on that helmet. Some guys are going to get hurt; I apologize for that. But, what our coaches and every coach in this league tells players is you want to separate the player from the ball. You want to hit him hard. We get jacked up for that; you all get jacked up for that. They replay it on the Jumbotron at every game when there's a big hit.

“If it's an illegal hit to the head and on purpose, I'm not for that. But if you're just out there playing and you hit a guy, and he moves and it alters your angle when you're making a tackle, that's the game.”

Although the Steelers' Harrison has said he's considering retirement if he cannot continue to play the way he always has, most players say they won't change their approach, including the Bears' Harris.

“I play football,” Harris said. “I signed up to play this game. Nobody's forcing me to play. I know the ramifications. I don't think anyone in this locker room or in any locker room is intentionally trying to go out and harm anyone or hit anybody or cause significant injury to them. (But) yeah, you want them to feel you.

“If I hit somebody coming across the middle, I want them to think twice the next time they come across, and they might drop the ball. That's football.”

But to some players it seems the league wants to change the game.

“We should go out there and play two-hand touch Sunday if we can't make contact,” Tillman said.

all the more reason for the bears to start investing in better wrs. If offense is going to be given all these benefits might as well exploit it. We shouldnt fall behind the times and adapt to this. The days of a killer defense is being fazed out by the league.

Get rid of the helmets and players will stop leading with their head when they tackle other players. Also this eliminates the face mask penalty.