Clowney hit would get him ejected in 2013

When Benard Pollard from the Ravens said football wouldn't exist in 20-30 years, I thought it was laughable, but I'm starting to agree with him.

 

The sky is not falling. 40 years ago the head slap and clothesline were legal. When they changed the rule many said the game wouldn't be around today. The game of football is evolving. I'm not saying you have to like the changes, but you're wrong if you think that this or any rule to regulate safety will kill the game.

 

And more than a few without it.

 

True for most rule changes, however when they take the most basic and ancillary parts of playing defense and make it so that a zebra now has the power to eject someone from the game (for something that should be perfectly legal, see the clowney hit) that imho is not only bad for the game, it is an attempt to change it into something that is no longer "the game"

Bottom line, I'm all for doing whatever they can to stop the head to head, obvious spear shots. Those are bad and those that do it should be punsished. However when you have working ref's, and I've seen or read accounts from at least 3 that said they would have ejected Clowney, then the system is broken before it ever gets started.

 

I remember watching the game live and not jumping up and down but I just said out loud, "oh my god, he's dead" I really thought he may have killed him. It looked like he got hit by a truck.

 

I hear ya. He's lucky that his head wasn't still in the helmet?

 

That is just it though, The initial hit wasn't to the helmet. You can see in the replay that Clowney clearly plants his facemask into the dudes chest. It was the secondary blow that knocked the helmet off. Even with this, too many ref's have said they still would have ejected him. It is grade A bullshit.

 

I'm with ya. I'm just parroting what the talking heads say anytime a helmet flies off.