NFL Injuries: Get Rid of Headhunters, You Fix the Game

The NFL finds itself at a major crossroads in 2010. With the current Collective Bargaining Agreement ending, and talk of an 18-game season in the works, the last thing the NFL needed was another major issue to deal with. 

But through six weeks of the season, that’s exactly what the league has on it’s hands, as numerous players have sustained serious head traumas on hits in 2010.

In Week 6 alone, there were at least six different players who left their games with head injuries sustained via helmet-to-helmet hits. The NFL dealt out $175,000 in fines to players for reckless play, as well. 

The NFL announced today that it’s going to start fining and suspending players who make reckless and dangerous plays on the field. 

However, there is a portion of the NFL fan base who feels that this move is further weakening a sport that has long glorified the big hit, and the toughness and grit of it’s players.

With all of the rules involved in hitting the quarterback combined with this new crackdown on violent hits, this camp claims it’s getting to be impossible to play the game the way it was meant to be played.

They say the violence is a part of the game, and the injuries that come with that violence is as well. Limiting a player’s ability to tackle another person makes things unfair for NFL defenses.

Are they right? Is the NFL getting too soft for it’s own good? Have we gone too far in our efforts to protect players? 

An NFL game is full of collisions. There are dozens of them every game. Every play features several, as the offensive line slams into the defensive line, and the play ends with a tackle. Most of these collisions are harmless; even many of the hard hits we love so dearly are typically perfectly acceptable. 

The NFL isn’t trying to do away with big hits. Guys like Troy Polamalu, Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Brian Urlacher are capable of delivering big hits cleanly, without causing injury. They’re not the one’s the NFL will be punishing. 

I’m talking about the Dunta Robinsons, James Harrisons and Brandon Meriweathers of the football world. They’re what are known as headhunters, eschewing correct technique in an effort to light up opposing players.

It’s not that they’ve done it once or twice; every player’s made at least one poor tackle in his career. Instead, it seems that they make a habit out of doing it. 

Take Harrison. He has admitted to the press in the aftermath of sending two Browns receivers, Mohammed Massaquoi and Josh Cribbs out of the game with matching concussions. Harrison led with his head, and aimed at both players’ heads. 

Then there’s Meriweather, a promising young safety for the Patriots. He tried the same cheap shot on Ravens tight end Todd Heap not once, but twice, connecting on the second try by rocketing his helmet up into Heap’s as the tight end came down from missing a pass.

Add to that the fact that Heap had missed the ball and was going to be tackled by another Pats defender, and Meriweather clearly knew what he was doing.

Finally, there’s Robinson. Known around the NFL as a dirty player, Dunta always seems to lead with his helmet, and paid the price this week against the Eagles, knocking himself and wideout DeSean Jackson out of the game. 

The sport of football hasn’t gotten more violent as the years progressed as many would have you believe; it’s just as bad now as it used to be. The difference is the players. With a massive increase in the number of incredibly athletic players, the game has gotten bigger, stronger and faster.

The average NFL player is infinitely more explosive than he was 20 years ago. He’s much more capable of dealing damage to an opposing player. However, he’s just as foolish about how to avoid doing that damage. 

While we’ve become much more aware of the consequences of repeated head trauma, the culture of the NFL has not changed one iota. Until this season, many headhunters were lauded as excellent defenders, and it was seen as macho to re-enter a game after sustaining a head injury. 

Coaches allow this to continue, neglecting to punish players who deliver those hits, and in many cases, even defending the hit despite clear video evidence of the player’s actions. 

How can we fix it? Suspensions are great, but that’s only half the battle. Make sure all coaches teach proper in-game tackling technique, rather than turning a blind eye to reckless (and in James Harrison’s case, malicious) play. 

Will you ever completely fix the problem? No; accidents happen, players make mistakes. But repeat offenders like Harrison, Robinson, Meriweather, Steelers wideout Hines Ward, and Bengals safety Roy Williams deserve stern and strict punishment for their actions. 

If coaches teach proper technique at all levels of football, it is virtually assured that the concussion rate will plummet at all levels as well.

I will admit that the NFL’s enforcement of the letter of their rules, rather than the spirit of them, has been disheartening, and has damaged the game in the long run. But the league’s heart is in the right place. 

Like most situations, this one is not strictly a cut-and-dry issue. You’re not going to get every cheap hit right, and there is no way to completely eradicate the issue from the sport. But with a combination of discipline and teaching (what?! Coaches teach players how to play football?!), it is possible to teach dirty players that their behavior will not be tolerated, and giving them the chance to play the game the way it’s supposed to be played. 

In short, maybe by teaching Dunta Robinson how to properly hit, and showing him that dangerous hits will be punished, we can turn him into what his reputation claims he is: a good cornerback.