Steelers' James Harrison suspended for one game; will appeal

[lillloyd]

That's an excellent point…but I thought helmet to helmet is always a penalty, regardless of in or out of the pocket?
Also, no QB asks for takes more punishment than Big Ben…he gets the Shaq rules thrown at him. It is hard to let McCoy run around and then flip it with his head leaning forward AND NOT have some helmet contact.

There is a common misconception out there that helmet-to-helmet contact is categorically illegal; it is not. Once a player establishes himself as a runner, helmet-to-helmet contact is allowed.

I think the misconception persists because when commentators describe a play or a fine, they say it is for "helmet-to-helmet" contact and not "helmet-to-helmet contact on a defenseless player". That last part is obviously critical. Helmet-to-helmet contact occurs every game (Mendenhall was twice hit, helmet-to-helmet, in that same Browns game, but that is NOT a penalty). The reason you never see it called on running backs is that almost by definition, they are established runners and not defenseless. If every helmet-to-helmet instance were called, players would be getting suspended left and right, because it's impossible to take that aspect completely out of the game (if a runner jukes and lowers his head, he may actually initiate the helmet to helmet).

Look, Harrison deserved a fine (and by extension, the suspension for his recent string of violations) for his McCoy hit. He took an extra step and blasted him. But this did fall into a somewhat grey area in the rulebook--something many commentators noted--in that McCoy tucked the ball, ran several steps along the line of scrimmage, and then only at the last second flicked it out. He basically went from having established himself as a runner to defenseless in a split second. There were several commentators who speculated (incorrectly) that Harrison might only receive a fine because their were mitigating circumstances.

 

[sly24]

In my opinion, Rodney Harrison (along with many other players) would have similar struggles to J.Harrison under the new rules, and would be receiving major fines and/or suspensions on a regular basis. I know you say that he was typically "well within the rules", but his career fine total--over $200K, when a total like that really meant something--suggests the league found him crossing the line on many occasions. (Regarding the video, I respectfully disagree--are we watching the same one? The hits at :33 and :52 are textbook examples of everything the league does NOT tolerate currently, i.e. launching and going high at a defenseless receiver). John Lynch is another guy--commentators seemed to love him, but he regularly led with the helmet. Perhaps their saving grace would be that both are vastly more eloquent off the field than James Harrison, who is clearly afflicted with FIM (Foot-in-Mouth) disease.

Again my point was not to denigrate R. Harrison, but rather that many teams have had this kind of guy on their teams over the years, and whether someone deems him merely "hard-hitting" or "gutless" falls largely to the individual's rooting interest. And the larger point is that it's only recently that the league has altered the fine $$ scale, as well as the threshold for suspensions. For better or worse, James Harrison's style is nothing new or even particularly unique; he's the latest in a long line of enforcers, but it's the rulebook that's changed, not the players.

Just for yuks, here's the hit of George Martin on Jim McMahon, the last "tackle" (if you can call it that lol!) to warrant a suspension. That's followed by Turkey Jones' faceplant of Terry Bradshaw in the 70s. (If you're wondering, Martin was suspended, but Turkey Jones was simply fined $3000...those were tough dudes in the 70s!)

Jim McMahon body slammed by Charles Martin Bears Packers 1986 - YouTube

Turkey Jones' Greatest Sack - YouTube

I agree Rodney would have had major fines if he played now. Sometimes I watch videos of Rodney on youtube and man, so many hits in there would be illegal today.

 

[pherein]

There is a common misconception out there that helmet-to-helmet contact is categorically illegal; it is not. Once a player establishes himself as a runner, helmet-to-helmet contact is allowed.

I agree, but on a different point, I don't understand this. Its killing our RB's.
There is no single player in NFL being unprotected or taking more punishment than RB's. They are pretty much the only players playing old school without benefit or protection of penalties, and because of that they last 3-5 years on average.
A QB is hit with 1 245lbs man, RBs are hit with multiple 5.4 speed 240-340lbs consistently.
Like when I was a RB in high/college I see the defense pile on them after the play to cause damage, and the defensive players stand up putting their full pressure on the RB's knee, chest, or leg. This isn't even a penalty but is common in football. Plus defensive players are trained to hit a RB at the knees, like in college, to damage them.