Dante Wesley's Brutal Hit on Clifton Smith Was Cheap and Unnecessary

The special teams hit the Carolina Panthers' Dante Wesley put on Tampa Bay Buccaneers punt returner Clifton Smith was one of the most brutal, cheap and unnecessary hits I have seen in a while in the NFL.

The play took place in the second quarter of the Panthers' 28-21 win over the Bucs.

Wesley, an excellent special teams player for the Panthers, lined up a devastating hit to Smith, who was looking up at the ball.

Before he knew it, he was laying unconscious for nearly a minute before he came to, looking up at Buccaneers' training personnel and the fight that ensued after the hit.

Was it dirty? Yes.

Was it brutal? Yes.

Was it unnecessary? Yes.

Malicious? Un-clear.

Wesley, who apologized after the game, told reporters that he was not trying to hurt Smith on the play; it was simply a case of poor timing on his part.

The biggest problem I have with this "excuse" errrrrr, apology is that Wesley left his feet and launched himself at Smith without as much of a glance back to see where the ball was or if Smith was calling for a fair catch.

If it was just a matter of "poor timing" as Wesley put it. If that were the case, then he was guessing on a hit that put a fellow player's health in jeopardy and that is just unacceptable to me.

One thing is for sure, the NFL needs to take swift and appropriate action on incidents such as this.  And it couldn’t happen at a worse time for the league, when intense focus and research is being put into the head injuries NFL players sustain and the long-term consequences they suffer.

Brain trauma has been a central point of discussion in the suicides of former Eagles safety Andre Waters and former Steelers offensive lineman Terry Long.

Former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson blames past concussion issues for severe bouts of depression and other personal issues he has battled in recent years.

The decision to remove “hard hits” from the game of football would be like the decision to remove tragic irony from all of Shakespeare’s works. Whether you enjoy it or not, it’s how most plays are going to end.

The extent to which the players within the NFL have built their physiques is so great that it seems only a full-force blow can bring them to the ground.

You’re certainly never going to see a linebacker or free safety give up six points just to make sure the wide receiver is able to keep his wind intact.

But handfuls of brutal hits seem to occur on a weekly basis this season, which in turn keeps this issue on the table.

The hit Wesley put on Clifton Smith is no exception. When fans and players complain about the litany of flags and fines over personal fouls and hits to the head, they might want to read more about the head trauma issues that are followed by such plays.

What is more important here people? Winning the game at any cost, or costing someone their brains, their jobs, or more importantly, their lives?

An easy choice to me.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?