Meriweather Fined $50,000

[Barnsie]

I don't support these crazy helmet to helmet hits. That said, at this rate of change to contact in the secondary, harsh hits, etc, going across the middle to catch a ball will have zero consequence soon. Defenders will have to stand there and watch you catch, then make the tackle.

 

[WhiteWesWelker88]

so much for that new sports car Brandon you must wait.....


A fair fine for a warning.....


I feared a 1 gamer w/ no warning

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Lol, what next, want to whip em out and measure?

Nooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bret Favre got in wicked trouble for that. Don't do it!

 

[cmasspatsfan]

Originally Posted by sebman2112
What "two" illegal hits? He only made one illegal helmet to helmet hit on Heap. He gave Heap a shot earlier in the game where he lead with his shoulder/helmet, but he didn't actually make contact with his helmet, and he didn't hit Heap in the helmet on that play, either (perfectly legal). The other big hits from Meriweather weren't even close to being illegal. Yea, Mason stayed down for awhile after Meriweather tried to separate him from the ball, but that hit was legal, and in bounds. He was called for "illegal contact" once, but that penalty was actually on Arrington, and Meriweather made a good clean hit in the endzone seperating the ball from the receiver.

I think the hit on Heap on the goal line is what the other must be. I personally don't think that one was intentional, or all that bad.

Thats the only one I can think of too that was even close, Id like to see it again, Im going to search for a replay of that hit, if you have one can you post it?

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

I like Meriweather and he is probably our best safety on the team but he has to start to learn to tackle and not out there to knock a guy on his ass...flying in the air is great in a circus but in the NFL I would rather see a player grab ahold of a WR with BOTH hands and bring him down with an attempt at a strip then to see a flying baboon just trying to knock a guy out which Meriweather has done in the past but maybe not as hard as he did with Heap.

 

[reflexblue]

Nooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bret Favre got in wicked trouble for that. Don't do it!

He got fined 4,000 K. A thousand per inch

 

[Fencer]

Am I wrong in thinking that they are not going to hand out suspensions for this past weekends games but will start handing out suspensions from this point forth?

That's what I expected all along.

Their posturing that Meriweather ALMOST got suspended helps them communicate the new rules, and doesn't really hurt much.

But ACTUALLY applying new rules to him retroactively would have been unfair, even if they had cobbled together some argument that the rules weren't REALLY new.

 

[Deus Irae]

This is nuts, plain and simple. What Brandon did was against the rules and potentially dangerous. He launched at Heep's head helmet-first. If he had led with his shoulder, which he could've done, it would've been an entirely different matter.

The rule would have applied even if Meriweather had clocked Heap with his shoulder. The key to the rule is the so-called defenselessness of the receiver, not just the helmet-to-helmet aspect.

» Initial contact to the head of a defenseless receiver also will draw a 15-yard penalty. "Our clear movement is to getting out of the striking in the head area," Pereira said. "We're reading about injuries that say spinal and vertebrae. We've got to try something."

Owners pass four rules in an attempt to make the game safer

Smith said the new rules to protect a defenseless receiver are "very complicated."

"It's not just head-to-head contact," Smith said. "It's contact with the shoulder pads or the arm, any part of the body, with the helmet or the neck area. And again, a defenseless player definition, I'm not exactly 100 percent sure how they want to say a guy is defenseless."

NFL.com news: Falcons' Robinson sustained concussion on Jackson collision

 

[apple strudel]

He got fined 4,000 K. A thousand per inch

Ha ha ha. It'll never stop being funny. Every time he throws a ball that falls short, the world will laugh.

 

[Tunescribe]

The rule would have applied even if Meriweather had clocked Heap with his shoulder. The key to the rule is the so-called defenselessness of the receiver, not just the helmet-to-helmet aspect.

I'm not sure about that. It depends on what the defender is aiming at, doesn't it? If he leads with the shoulder and hits the receiver below the neck, I believe it's legal.

 

[Aßßynormal]

The second hit came awhile after the Heap hit. It was on near sidelines with both on the ground. I remember wondering if Meriweather was losing his mind, we couldn't afford another penality. It wasn't a very 'hard' hit and ref let it go. I don't remember who the WR was.

 

[TB=TD]

when you were smoking in the boys room, i was playing football with men.

:d:d:d:d:d

 

[Deus Irae]

I'm not sure about that. It depends on what the defender is aiming at, doesn't it? If he leads with the shoulder and hits the receiver below the neck, I believe it's legal.

Well, yes, but you're completely changing your scenario. You claimed that Meriweather launched at Heap's helmet. I'm saying that would be a penalty regardless of whether Meriweather led with his helmet, shoulder, etc....

 

[sebman2112]

The second hit came awhile after the Heap hit. It was on near sidelines with both on the ground. I remember wondering if Meriweather was losing his mind, we couldn't afford another penality. It wasn't a very 'hard' hit and ref let it go. I don't remember who the WR was.

The sideline hit was on Mason, and perfectly legal.

 

[reflexblue]

The sideline hit was on Mason, and perfectly legal.

Yeah that was a Great hit, I want to see that EVERY week. I want opposing WR's and TE's to be terrified of catching a pass.

 

[PatsDeb]

The fine is steep, but he's lucky he wasn't suspended. Now he should take some additional funds and hire a coach who can teach him how to hit hard, but legally.

 

[PatsDeb]

The second hit came awhile after the Heap hit. It was on near sidelines with both on the ground. I remember wondering if Meriweather was losing his mind, we couldn't afford another penality. It wasn't a very 'hard' hit and ref let it go. I don't remember who the WR was.

It was Derrick Mason, and I thought the same thing, "what the hell are you doing, Merriweather?!"

 

[reflexblue]

It was Derrick Mason, and I thought the same thing, "what the hell are you doing, Merriweather?!"

I saw a replay of that earlier, it was a good clean hard hit.

 

[Art_Vandelay421]

I'm ok with the helmet to helmet hits getting fined and suspended. And even the spearing.

But I hope we don't start seeing flags on guys for laying a shoulder into someone's chest.

I have a feeling refs will start throwing flags for anything they view as a hard it.

If a receiver is coming across the field and catches the ball and a safety lays a shoulder into the recievers chest so hard his helmet pops off, that should not be penalty.

I want the players protected from the shots to the head, but if they are going to start flagging for hard hits in general, then they might was well foregoe tackling all together and throw flags on the players. Because there will be no way for a defender to judge what is a proper tackling technique.

I feel the same way, you already see this happening. You get the good hit, the oo and ahhh happens and then the flag comes, the conference, then they justify...

By the way...I thought the hit on Welker in week 2 was more blatant. In addition, I almost choked when I heard Phil Simms going on and on about how I don't want to hear about taking the fun out of the game....then he says "there have been lots of rules put in to protect the Defensive players too.???? Huh???" Which rules are those? I know...they make it it look good by calling a crackback every lunar eclipse but, Phil don't insult our intelligence. The overwhelming majority of the new rules are to protect the offense. Watch the line play...chopping at knees or the crackbacks. A lot of defensive players will tell you the same thing..

 

[apple strudel]

The fine is steep, but he's lucky he wasn't suspended. Now he should take some additional funds and hire a coach who can teach him how to hit hard, but legally.

Each player should have been fined the equivalent of 1 game check, reiterating the NFL's intention of actually suspending players. Getting fined a game check would be the financial equivalent of a suspension without getting into the unfairness of using these guys as examples, but still letting everybody know that the next guy who does it will get suspended with fair warning.