Yeah, that was petulant and pouty. Of course, I wouldn’t say that to his face.
Wow. I don’t think anyone believes that he’ll actually retire over this though…
I hope nobody holds him on his way out the door…
Harrison’s probably pissed mostly because 75k is almost two games’ salary at this stage of his contract. He and Tomlin met this morning and he was given the afternoon off to think about things. Doesn’t sound much like news though since Tomlin always allows the 30+ year old veterans to take Wednesday practices off.
Anything that keeps James Harrison angry is all right in my books. He’ll lose much much more money if he walks away from his contract.
In other non-illegal hit news, Brett Keisel has a gimpy hamstring and won’t play this weekend. Frankly I think Nick Eason has looked better than Ziggy Hood out there despite almost dying in the off-season. No matter who starts we’ll get to see a lot more from Hood in the next few games.
Oh, please. He got a $10 million dollar signing bonus and a separate 2.5 million dollar bonus last year when he signed. Granted he was being held by a offensive lineman when he signed the contract and every time he cashes his paycheck and it’s never, ever called, but he still counts for 6.3 million against the cap this year. That makes his fine roughly 1.2 % of his cap number.
This “poor little James Harrison” crap is, as usual, baloney.
I never said poor James Harrison. I meant that’s probably why’s he acting all whiney and pissy about it.
ETA: He makes just over $40k per game according to what his agent said.
Huh.
See if I can actually play by NFL rules and still be effective.
I mean, I know the point he thinks he’s making, but that’s… not a very good point.
I wasn’t going to say it, but… yeah. I mean, read the sentence and parse it in the most straightforward manner.
Anyway, I don’t think I’m going to like the result of what happened this weekend. They fined Meriweather - good. They fined Harrison - good. But they also fined the guy who took out DeSean Jackson with a clean hit. Why? Just for the sake of completeness and sending a message? The league should be going after head hunting, dirty hits - not clean hits that are so hard they injure someone.
I don’t get the point you and Jimmy Chitwood seem to think that you are making.
He believed he was playing by NFL rules as of Monday. Yesterday afternoon he was clearly told he was not. Now he has to figure out if he can play within the rules as he presently understands them. I don’t think you or anyone else can say that yesterday was NOT a new day as regards the NFLs treatment of these rules.
I think it was a dumb and petulant thing to say. I also think that it should not be difficult for someone to play within the scope of the rules, even if they have been clarified here. On the other hand, I think you have to twist what he said to get anything remotely like you are suggesting out of it.
Obviously we disagree about the Harrison hit. However, I think we agree about the inconsistencies already evident in handling an issue of judgment like this. When Cleveland is 9-6 and needs a win to make a playoff spot, but a star defender is out due to suspension because of a hit like Harrison’s, I’m sure you’ll be none too pleased.
I’m not suggesting what he meant, just that the phrasing was poor and the most obvious way to read it is that he doesn’t think he can play by the rules. The implication amused me.
James Harrison is a very good football player but I think it’s clear he isn’t going to law school after his career is over.
I don’t think James Harrison has ever played by NFL rules. Nor federal or state rules, but that’s another discussion.
Are you all in agreement that the Dunta Robinson hit was clean? Has everyone here forgotten you can’t hit a defenseless receiver? Or are you all thinking you should be able to hit a defenseless receiver? Robinson’s hit wasn’t clean, nor legal. Neither of Harrison’s hits were legal, either. And while I think Robinson’s hit was not meant to be dirty (which is obviously not true about Harrison’s hits which were both clearly meant to seriously hurt someone), it was still illegal. I really don’t understand the vast disconnect between what the rules say and how everyone thinks this game has to be played. You can tackle people without leading with your head. You can “jack” people up without leading with your head. That people think this is somehow a necessary part of the game or “part of the risk of playing a man’s game” is seriously bullshit. Pseudo-macho bullshit.
Harrison’s hits were dirty because he was deliberately going for head to head contact. Dunta Robinson lead with his shoulder and hit DeSean Jackson in the sternum. He hit the receiver during the process of making the catch and hit the ball loose. That seems like textbook play to me. If the NFL is banning that, then I absolutely don’t support the notion.
My whole point is that there’s a difference between tough and dirty. Dunta Robinson’s hit is an example of where you can make a clean yet big hit. If that’s not allowed, then what the fuck are you supposed to do, wait for the receiver to catch the ball, take a few steps, and gently tug him down by the hips?
Going from memory since nfl.com video has turned to absolute shit this year, but leading with shoulder, shoulder to sternum contact is how I remember it.
I was disturbed by Meriweather’s hit on Todd Heap more than any of them. He should have been suspended IMO. I wouldn’t have fined Robinson for his hit.
I’m biased on Harrison but I don’t think the fine was unwarranted. The NFL is trying to send a message for the future as much as mete out punishment for the specific plays that were called out.
We are in complete agreement on these points. This “defenseless receiver” concept should not be expanded beyond the point where we are stopping people from delivering an unnecessary blow to a receiver who is stretching out on an uncatchable pass. What Jules Andre appears to be arguing for is some kind of fair catch rule applied to any passing situation. Football fans are opposed to this, Jules, not only due to testosterone overload, but also because it would represent a fundamental change to the nature of football. If it becomes illegal to make a hit or begin a tackle until you have confirmed possession by the receiver, then what football will turn into is essentially ultimate frisbee with tackling. I don’t like head shots and I would not be opposed to, as I said before, a consistent application of a rule something like high sticking in hockey. The problem is that in bang-bang football plays, moving from being defenseless to defensive usually means ducking your head down, meaning that many times a defender aiming for the sternum will end up making contact in some fashion with the head. I know that SenorBeef disagrees, but I think that this is what happened in the Massoquoi hit.
Also, let’s talk a little bit more about being able to tackle without “leading with your head.” Part of the issue here is semantics and connotations. Literally, you cannot make a proper tackle without leading with your head. Since a proper tackle involves putting your helmet on the outside hip of the ball carrier (or essentially cutting off his path of travel with your head) and then “wrapping up” with your arms to bring him down, you cannot do this without your head leading most of the rest of your body. Tacklers are supposed to have their head up when doing this, but if you have never worn a helmet and shoulder pads (and occasionally additional padding between the helmet and shoulder pad) you may not realize that the range of movement to go from head down to head up is actually very limited. Leading with your helmet should mean only that the crown of the helmet is the first thing to strike the ball-carrier. Again, however, given the limited range of movement between head up and head down, and speed with which plays develop and players respond to others’ movements, it’s going to be inevitable that many tackles are made without the head as far up as possible, and it’s going to be inevitable that some contact occurs to one or both players’ heads.
If we are going to be consistent as well, then we will also have to penalize and fine running backs and other ball carriers who lower their head in anticipation of a hit and in order to break a tackle. How do you intend to have the league address an offensive player delivering a blow by leading with his helmet?
This craptastic “defenseless receiver” rule doesn’t just apply to uncatchable balls though. That I get. What I don’t get is why these penalties are being called against a defender making a legal, clean hit on a receiver while he is in the air actually catching a catchable ball in an attempt to dislodge it. That’s football!
I’m a Pats fan and I completely agree about the Meriwether hit. It was a dirty hit, pure and simple, and I would support a suspension for hits like that. It should be noted, however, that he apologized for it publicly and also directly to Todd Heap, unlike some other players whose names need not be mentioned…
Good for him. Anything can happen in the heat of the moment. Apologizing directly to the other player shows a lot of character.
I’m sure no one has been anxiously anticipating Channing Crowder’s input on the crackdown on hits but I find them interesting so here they are. 
Wait, so you think that the rules actually changed, rather than just being more harshly enforced? My point was that they hadn’t, which is what makes Harrison’s admission hilarious. He’s saying, well, I certainly haven’t ever played by that rule, and now I have to figure out whether I can still do anything useful on a football field if I have to follow it. The petulance is fucking hilarious considering that it’s based on a presumption that it’s newly illegal to launch yourself at a defenseless guy’s head.