Is Too Much Being Done to Protect Quarterbacks?

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article concerning the NFL and how much it cares about player safety. In that article, I wrote that the NFL does not care and just thinks about money. This article is also addressing the same topic in a way, but targets quarterbacks and how they are protected too much.

Everybody knows that the quarterback is the leader of the team and most of the time the face of the franchise. Everybody knows they are the money-makers, they put fans in the seats and this is why they are so valuable.

Naturally you would want to protect this entity that rakes in the dough. But when does protecting this player go too far and it starts to ruin the intensity of the game?

There are just so many rules used to protect the quarterback. Sure I can see if you would want to penalize a guy who hits the quarterback well after the ball is thrown, but this season, roughing the passer has been called way too many times. Most of the time it is called when it does not need to be. Here's an example:

A few weeks ago during a Steelers game, James Harrison was called on a roughing the passer penalty, but he was clearly not able to stop himself and the hit was unavoidable. Harrison later commented on the bad call and was fined for it. Not the hit, the comment.

And again yesterday, in the Giants game against the Cowboys. It was when Brooks Bollinger was put in the game for Brad Johnson. Bollinger dropped back and as the Giants' defensive pass rush closed in on him, he threw a short pass and as he threw it, he jumped a little.

Just as Bollinger got the pass off, he was hit by Giants' defensive lineman Justin Tuck. Bollinger's little jump, combined with Tuck's hit, caused Tuck to drive Bollinger into the ground. It was a perfectly clean hit.

But he was penalized for the hit and received an unnecessary roughness penalty. Clean hits do not deserve penalties.

This raises the question: Is too much being done to protect the quarterback?

The answer is yes. There are simply too many rules that are in place just to protect quarterbacks. I understand why you would want to protect something as valuable as a Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, they make you money. But don't protect them to the point that it hurts the game.

Football is supposed to be a tough, hard hitting game and the league is making it too easy for quarterbacks. A quarterback does not deserve special treatment in my opinion just because they are not colliding with other players on every play.

I am all for players' safety, but when it goes too far like it has with protecting quarterbacks, it ruins the toughness of the game.