Is flag football ahead for NFL?
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Making the game safer is making NFL players unsure what's a legal hit.
Players on both Super Bowl teams say they are confused about which hits are considered clean and which ones could lead to a fine. And it's not just the guys on defense who are wondering about the future of pro football.
"I think the rules will change a lot," San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis said Tuesday. "There's already no helmet to helmet. Might be flag football, maybe."
Baltimore Ravens safety Bernard Pollard, one of the league's hardest hitters, warned against trying to take collisions out of the game, as long as they are clean.
"You can't play this game and not expect it to be physical," said Pollard, who was fined $15,250 for a hit on Patriots receiver Wes Welker in the AFC championship game that Pollard believes was within the rules. "There will be injuries in football. There's a car crash on every play."
His 49ers counterpart, All-Pro Dashon Goldson, says defenders keep this in mind when they take the field:
"Do your best and then hope you don't get a letter (with a fine) in your locker on Wednesday."
The NFL has sought to eliminate any hits to the head and neck area of defenseless players, particularly in the last three years. It also has banned players launching themselves helmet-first toward an opponent.
Yet, every week, players are fined for those actions, and there have been suspensions. Baltimore safety Ed Reed drew a one-game suspension this season that was lifted by the NFL on appeal and turned into a $50,000 fine for repeated illegal tackles. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound Reed is not considered a vicious hitter.
Reed admits he can't be sure what's a true tackle these days and what crosses the line.
"A lot needs to be done with it. I don't think every fine is right," he said. "You have to go back and really look at how guys play the game before you judge them, is what I'm trying to say."
While still recognizing the importance of keeping games as safe as possible, defensive players have complained for years about the league's crackdown on hits. The 49ers and Ravens have two of the most physical defenses in the NFL, and they are proud of their violent nature.
"You can't play timid," Goldson said.
But even offensive players concede that defenses are at a disadvantage to the point of confusion.
Baltimore's Anquan Boldin, one of the more physical wide receivers in the league, doesn't feel sorry for anyone trying to tackle him. But he understands their plight as they close in.
" All defensive players have to deal with that," Boldin said. "It's tough on defensive players on those defenseless receiver calls because they come in and then the receiver drops his shoulder and they hit in the (head). And they get a penalty.
"So maybe they aren't sure and that's bad. This game is played too fast to worry about that, but they do have to worry."
The NFL isn't going to back down on its emphasis on player safety, of course. It is facing at least 175 lawsuits as more than 3,800 players have sued the league over head injuries as the concussion issue has gained attention in recent years. The total number of plaintiffs is 6,000 when spouses, relatives and other representatives are included.
So the emphasis on eliminating what Ray Anderson, the league's main disciplinarian, calls "egregious fouls" will remain.
"We will just not let up," Anderson told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "Get used to it, this will be our mantra: We have an obligation in being relentless in protecting our players.
"If they are in a defenseless position, hitting in the helmet is unnecessary. We said player health and safety is our No. 1 priority from the get-go and we have stuck to it with no apologies and no defensive attitude about it."
Meantime, as offenses make scoreboards spin with record numbers of points, defenses try to figure out exactly what they are allowed to do.
"We are guys who are supposed to hit," said 49ers safety Donte Whitner, who is known for his bone-crunching tackles. "We have to bring the element of fear when they come over the middle. We want receivers to think do you really want to keep coming over the middle time and time again.
"We need to make sure they don't want to, but we need to do it the right way. But we need to figure out the right way."
Players on both Super Bowl teams say they are confused about which hits are considered clean and which ones could lead to a fine. And it's not just the guys on defense who are wondering about the future of pro football.
"I think the rules will change a lot," San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis said Tuesday. "There's already no helmet to helmet. Might be flag football, maybe."
Baltimore Ravens safety Bernard Pollard, one of the league's hardest hitters, warned against trying to take collisions out of the game, as long as they are clean.
"You can't play this game and not expect it to be physical," said Pollard, who was fined $15,250 for a hit on Patriots receiver Wes Welker in the AFC championship game that Pollard believes was within the rules. "There will be injuries in football. There's a car crash on every play."
His 49ers counterpart, All-Pro Dashon Goldson, says defenders keep this in mind when they take the field:
"Do your best and then hope you don't get a letter (with a fine) in your locker on Wednesday."
The NFL has sought to eliminate any hits to the head and neck area of defenseless players, particularly in the last three years. It also has banned players launching themselves helmet-first toward an opponent.
Yet, every week, players are fined for those actions, and there have been suspensions. Baltimore safety Ed Reed drew a one-game suspension this season that was lifted by the NFL on appeal and turned into a $50,000 fine for repeated illegal tackles. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound Reed is not considered a vicious hitter.
Reed admits he can't be sure what's a true tackle these days and what crosses the line.
"A lot needs to be done with it. I don't think every fine is right," he said. "You have to go back and really look at how guys play the game before you judge them, is what I'm trying to say."
While still recognizing the importance of keeping games as safe as possible, defensive players have complained for years about the league's crackdown on hits. The 49ers and Ravens have two of the most physical defenses in the NFL, and they are proud of their violent nature.
"You can't play timid," Goldson said.
But even offensive players concede that defenses are at a disadvantage to the point of confusion.
Baltimore's Anquan Boldin, one of the more physical wide receivers in the league, doesn't feel sorry for anyone trying to tackle him. But he understands their plight as they close in.
" All defensive players have to deal with that," Boldin said. "It's tough on defensive players on those defenseless receiver calls because they come in and then the receiver drops his shoulder and they hit in the (head). And they get a penalty.
"So maybe they aren't sure and that's bad. This game is played too fast to worry about that, but they do have to worry."
The NFL isn't going to back down on its emphasis on player safety, of course. It is facing at least 175 lawsuits as more than 3,800 players have sued the league over head injuries as the concussion issue has gained attention in recent years. The total number of plaintiffs is 6,000 when spouses, relatives and other representatives are included.
So the emphasis on eliminating what Ray Anderson, the league's main disciplinarian, calls "egregious fouls" will remain.
"We will just not let up," Anderson told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "Get used to it, this will be our mantra: We have an obligation in being relentless in protecting our players.
"If they are in a defenseless position, hitting in the helmet is unnecessary. We said player health and safety is our No. 1 priority from the get-go and we have stuck to it with no apologies and no defensive attitude about it."
Meantime, as offenses make scoreboards spin with record numbers of points, defenses try to figure out exactly what they are allowed to do.
"We are guys who are supposed to hit," said 49ers safety Donte Whitner, who is known for his bone-crunching tackles. "We have to bring the element of fear when they come over the middle. We want receivers to think do you really want to keep coming over the middle time and time again.
"We need to make sure they don't want to, but we need to do it the right way. But we need to figure out the right way."
Socialism in the NFL.
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Where else can ya get a job, agree to the working conditions, and sue someone else for you own decisions? All the while making MILLIONS of dollars.
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Personal responsibility? Accountability? Pfffttt...
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We got Unions! It don't matter how stoopid I am!
Flag football? Really?! No thanks, I won't watch it anymore if that happens.
I don't worry about the pro players so much but I do worry about the collage and even more so the high school kids. Especially with all the new head trauma studies have shown how much damage is really being with just the everyday constant small hits.
I am not a huge sports fan but I enjoy the occasional football game and those hard hits are part of the entertainment value and why some people watch the sport. It is a violent sport, no doubt about that. The players need to get over themselves and grow a pair and take the hits. Yes it could give you a concussion, yes it could leave you with lasting injuries later in life because of those hits. But your choosing to play that sport and get paid millions of dollars a year. If you cannot handle that and understand the possible consequences then maybe you should not be playing the sport. Leave it for the big boys that can figure it out. Any player saying they did not know that repeated hits to the head could cause brain injury is a moron. You donât need lots of studies and time to figure something like that out, so claiming they did not know that is a farce.
A NFL classic right here:Â http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMmQkNT65Do
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 @d_2 EPIC HIT!  Love it!  Also love how that was talked about more than the holding penalty!  :)
This is a dangerous sport..duh! Still it is no more dangerous than doing backflips off of high bars, climbing mountains, riding motorcycles, skiing, etc. This is the greatest sport ever evented, try to cut back on the helmet to helmets and leave it alone. These guys are making millions, fame and fortune for this. If they are concerned then get a real job for $60,000 a year like the rest of us!
 @sometimesright Exactly. I would even endorse a higher penalty for helmet to helmet, but all this other bs is just taking away from the game.
The real danger is the number of games these guys play and the cumulative effect on the brain. Any chance that the season (especially pre-season) is shortened? Yeah, you guys care, my tight end.
What about completely legal hits, shoulder in the chest, like Thomas on Davis? Where's the replay on crap like that that is a completely bogus call? You can cost teams games like that. The NFL is about contact, and winning. I would think that most players get this. Yeah there's times it can be avoided, but you have to admit that the NFL has over written rules that avoid injury, like push outs no longer being called. Now it's hit them as hard as you can to get them to only put 1 foot or less down in bounds.Â
Players should sign waivers when joining the nfl. That way the nfl isnt sued when players decide their heads aren't right ten yrs after the game.
Meanwhile, back in Australia, a rugby player is having his three broken fingers taped together so he can get back in the game for bragging rights, wheras his NFL counterpart sprains a TOE and is out for three weeks while collecting his millions. "Wimp.......Australian for American"
 @Harley-H.S.C. So why aren't all those tough as nails Rugby players coming over to take their share of the millions, obviously they would dominate all those NFL pansies right?  They can come kick field goals.
Time to start Pro Rugby teams! and screw this panty waist stuff.
They do this, I will never watch the NFL again...it's FOOTBALL, not a frackin' tea party!
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People get hit and get hurt...nothing's being done about boxers and wrestlers to gravitate THOSE toward flagging!
I don't mind the flags that are thrown when it's blatant high hit or a spear but I've seen more than a few hits where a guy sticks a shoulder pad into a guys chest and gets flagged for it. Used to be that if you went over the middle you expected to be hit. Quarterbacks were taught to keep the ball down to protect the receiver. Now you're just as likely to draw a flag for a hit on a play over the middle. Sorry but it's a violent game and when it's becomes something else, I'll watch something else.
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Mike
OH MY GAWD THE NFL IS TURNING INTO SARCASTABALL!!
That will give me more time on Sunday in the winter to do something else.They could wear skirts in stead of a flag it could be both sex's.
 @Mike Bikini Basketball!