James Harrison
- Thread starter ccyclonepower25
- Start date
I have to agree that Harrison's hit deserves some sort of punishment, but what kind of got lost in this whole shuffle is the fact that the Browns put McCoy back in the game after he suffered a concussion. There was a good write up about this on ESPN.
It is fair to criticize Browns over incident
The Browns medical staff claims that they didn't know he suffered one, but to me there's no way that's true. I happened to catch the end of that game, and it was clear to me just by watching that there was something wrong with McCoy after that hit. If myself, just an average fan, saw this then there is no way you can tell me that paid professionals didn't have a clue. There's no excuse for putting McCoy back in that game. None. Putting somebody's life in danger just to try to win a ball game is ridiculous. I could care less about the Browns, but this whole situation really upset me as a sports fan.
It is fair to criticize Browns over incident
The Browns medical staff claims that they didn't know he suffered one, but to me there's no way that's true. I happened to catch the end of that game, and it was clear to me just by watching that there was something wrong with McCoy after that hit. If myself, just an average fan, saw this then there is no way you can tell me that paid professionals didn't have a clue. There's no excuse for putting McCoy back in that game. None. Putting somebody's life in danger just to try to win a ball game is ridiculous. I could care less about the Browns, but this whole situation really upset me as a sports fan.
Yeah they should be skewered by the league considering their hardline stance on anything concussion related. He said he couldn't remember the end of the game at all, no way that wouldn't be apparent if they would have run him through the standard concussion tests.
Yeah, so at the very least they didn't test him for one then? That would be ridiculous considering how much emphasis has been put on protecting players from concussions the last few years. That's not just failing to do their job, but putting the players at risk. It's very worrisome to think that other training staffs could be acting like this as well. Once again, no excuse for this.
So, I'll preface this by acknowledging that I am a Steelers fan, so perhaps I am a bit biased about this issue. I'll admit that it was a hard, helmet-to-helmet hit and, based on the new rules, it should likely not go unnoticed. I also realize that Harrison has a history of this (although, not this season).
I want to point out what [intelligent] Steeler fans are upset about with the James Harrison issue. It's not that "It was a clean hit", it's that there is constant inconsistency in the application of the "rules".
Here's a video of Ray Lewis unleashing on Hines Ward, resulting in a Hines Ward concussion. No flag. No penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmyhcozGRr4"]Ray Lewis Helmet to Helmet vs Hines Ward - YouTube[/ame]
Jameel McClain on Heath Miller. No flag. No penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVrNoK5Ab_E"]Jameel McClain's ILLEGAL hit on Heath Miller - YouTube[/ame]
Jameel McClain on Antonio Brown, who was arguably a "defenseless receiver". No Flag. No Penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEY6K8D0oWk"]Jameel McClain hits Antonio Brown hard - YouTube[/ame]
And how about Ed Reed on Knowshon Moreno:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRcA89rypt4&feature=related"]Ed Reed destroys Knowshon Moreno - YouTube[/ame]
Bucs Safety Devin Holland on Danny Woodhead. Admittedly, he was fined for this after the game ($10,000), but how is this not a flag, by the NFL rules?:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgF56pnd9ow"]Danny Woodhead Gets Jacked Up - YouTube[/ame]
And yet, check out this "dirty" hit by James Harrison on Drew Brees. The result? A 15-yard penalty and $20,000 fine:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvfmN50ECQs"]James Harrison hit on Drew Brees - YouTube[/ame]
Also, keep in mind that Harrison himself was injured by a helmet-to-facemask hit by a Houston OL earlier this year, causing a fractured eye orbital and the need for surgery to repair it. I couldn't find a video of this, but there was no flag, no penalty, and no fine for the OL.
In my opinion, I don't like how they're limiting defenders in the NFL in an attempt to make it a pass-heavy, "exciting" league, yet I understand the need to be concerned for the health of players. My point is: if these hits are penalty-worthy, they need to call it every time and fine people for subsequent offenses. There is so little consistency to how they assess penalties and fines for these sorts of hits. Further, it seems that the rules are only applied when hits are made on QBs or WRs and not anything that may put a defender in harm's way.
I propose this: If these are the "rules" that the NFL sets out (therefore, this is the game that the players need to play), there needs to be a set series of reprimands/fines/suspensions for repeated offenses for these helmet-to-helmet hits, not just whatever Roger Goodell is feeling that day.
To conclude, I agree that Harrison has had his series of hard, helmet-to-helmet hits and that he should be reprimanded, as this is the game that the NFL has created. But, if the NFL is so concerned about player safety, then they need to consistently enforce these rules for all players of all positions and review ALL of these hits and assess fines.
The NFL needs to end the hypocrisy of claiming that they're concerned about "player safety", while profiting off of the sale of photos and videos of these huge hits (See the now defunct ESPN's "Jacked Up") and then turn around and fail to enforce the rules of the game AND want to expand the regular season to 18 games.
I hope this incoherent rant makes sense to some of you.
I want to point out what [intelligent] Steeler fans are upset about with the James Harrison issue. It's not that "It was a clean hit", it's that there is constant inconsistency in the application of the "rules".
Here's a video of Ray Lewis unleashing on Hines Ward, resulting in a Hines Ward concussion. No flag. No penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmyhcozGRr4"]Ray Lewis Helmet to Helmet vs Hines Ward - YouTube[/ame]
Jameel McClain on Heath Miller. No flag. No penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVrNoK5Ab_E"]Jameel McClain's ILLEGAL hit on Heath Miller - YouTube[/ame]
Jameel McClain on Antonio Brown, who was arguably a "defenseless receiver". No Flag. No Penalty. No fine. No suspension.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEY6K8D0oWk"]Jameel McClain hits Antonio Brown hard - YouTube[/ame]
And how about Ed Reed on Knowshon Moreno:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRcA89rypt4&feature=related"]Ed Reed destroys Knowshon Moreno - YouTube[/ame]
Bucs Safety Devin Holland on Danny Woodhead. Admittedly, he was fined for this after the game ($10,000), but how is this not a flag, by the NFL rules?:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgF56pnd9ow"]Danny Woodhead Gets Jacked Up - YouTube[/ame]
And yet, check out this "dirty" hit by James Harrison on Drew Brees. The result? A 15-yard penalty and $20,000 fine:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvfmN50ECQs"]James Harrison hit on Drew Brees - YouTube[/ame]
Also, keep in mind that Harrison himself was injured by a helmet-to-facemask hit by a Houston OL earlier this year, causing a fractured eye orbital and the need for surgery to repair it. I couldn't find a video of this, but there was no flag, no penalty, and no fine for the OL.
In my opinion, I don't like how they're limiting defenders in the NFL in an attempt to make it a pass-heavy, "exciting" league, yet I understand the need to be concerned for the health of players. My point is: if these hits are penalty-worthy, they need to call it every time and fine people for subsequent offenses. There is so little consistency to how they assess penalties and fines for these sorts of hits. Further, it seems that the rules are only applied when hits are made on QBs or WRs and not anything that may put a defender in harm's way.
I propose this: If these are the "rules" that the NFL sets out (therefore, this is the game that the players need to play), there needs to be a set series of reprimands/fines/suspensions for repeated offenses for these helmet-to-helmet hits, not just whatever Roger Goodell is feeling that day.
To conclude, I agree that Harrison has had his series of hard, helmet-to-helmet hits and that he should be reprimanded, as this is the game that the NFL has created. But, if the NFL is so concerned about player safety, then they need to consistently enforce these rules for all players of all positions and review ALL of these hits and assess fines.
The NFL needs to end the hypocrisy of claiming that they're concerned about "player safety", while profiting off of the sale of photos and videos of these huge hits (See the now defunct ESPN's "Jacked Up") and then turn around and fail to enforce the rules of the game AND want to expand the regular season to 18 games.
I hope this incoherent rant makes sense to some of you.
Your videos do very little to help your point. Only one that was remotely similar was the first hit by Ray Lewis. The hit on Heath Miller was made worse because he started to fall too the ground. The hit on Antonio Brown was a shoulder/forearm hit by a player with his head up who never left his feet. The Moreno hit looked like a clean hit with a shoulder. The Woodhead hit was correctly fined.
Harrison targetted McCoy with the crown of his helmet and left his feet as he speared him. Harrison is a dirty player.
On top of the fact that everyone is fully aware, or atleast they should be, that like it or not the quarterbacks are a protected group of people.
Harrison targetted McCoy with the crown of his helmet and left his feet as he speared him. Harrison is a dirty player.
On top of the fact that everyone is fully aware, or atleast they should be, that like it or not the quarterbacks are a protected group of people.
What about the Miller hit compared to Harrison's hit on Josh Cribbs. Again, not saying that Harrison didn't hit him in the head, but people use the argument "Oh, well, Miller was falling" or "Miller was blocked into him and the defender didn't have time to react", when it's the same scenario for the Josh Cribbs hit. One could argue that Cribbs was blocked into the path of Harrison and that he had little time to react.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVrNoK5Ab_E"]Jameel McClain's ILLEGAL hit on Heath Miller - YouTube[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdytVPZpGzs&feature=related"]Josh Cribbs get smacked hard by James Harrison - YouTube[/ame]
As for the Antonio Brown hit, he was in the act of catching the ball (i.e. "defenseless") AND was hit "above the shoulders". A clear cut example of a play that violates the NFL rules. (See attached screenshot)
I will reiterate. I am not saying that Harrison is right about this. I agree that he should be suspended and fined for the hit on McCoy and most of his other helmet-to-helmet hits. I am saying that the league and the referees needs to enforce it consistently, if they are to enforce it at all.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVrNoK5Ab_E"]Jameel McClain's ILLEGAL hit on Heath Miller - YouTube[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdytVPZpGzs&feature=related"]Josh Cribbs get smacked hard by James Harrison - YouTube[/ame]
As for the Antonio Brown hit, he was in the act of catching the ball (i.e. "defenseless") AND was hit "above the shoulders". A clear cut example of a play that violates the NFL rules. (See attached screenshot)
I will reiterate. I am not saying that Harrison is right about this. I agree that he should be suspended and fined for the hit on McCoy and most of his other helmet-to-helmet hits. I am saying that the league and the referees needs to enforce it consistently, if they are to enforce it at all.
Last edited:
NFL players don't have to play if they don't want to.....They take the paycheck, so they are assumed to have agreed to play by the same rules as everyone else.