Helmet to helmet hits (1 Viewer)

[ponchsox]

I know many of them are not intentional, but should the leagues start handing out suspensions to cut down on the number of hits leading with the helmet?

 

[netnalp]

Nerf cover for helmets

 

[gary mexico]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

 

[ponchsox]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

There were some really bad hits today on Desean Jackson and Todd Heap. It seems fines do nothing to prevent headhunting. While I agree football is a violent sport by trade, the players heads must be protected.

 

[gary mexico]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

There were some really bad hits today on Desean Jackson and Todd Heap. It seems fines do nothing to prevent headhunting. While I agree football is a violent sport by trade, the players heads must be protected.

They should retire and play ping pong then. Too many times if i see a really good hit, there is a flag immediately even if it wasnt helmet to helmet, just a really good legal hit will get you a flag...

 

[ponchsox]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

There were some really bad hits today on Desean Jackson and Todd Heap. It seems fines do nothing to prevent headhunting. While I agree football is a violent sport by trade, the players heads must be protected.

They should retire and play ping pong then. Too many times if i see a really good hit, there is a flag immediately even if it wasnt helmet to helmet, just a really good legal hit will get you a flag...

Leading with your helmet into another helmet isn't legal and is dirty

 

[mbuehner]

Everybody says its just football until the guy your team just paid 100 million dollars gets his head taken off. Mercenary but true- the league will do things because they have financial investments to do so.

I suspect helmets are going to undergo a major reinvention in the next few years. Forget the NFL, just the number of head rattles the average highschool player suffers in his career is something that must be addressed. If its not we could well see parents keeping their kids out of the sport as the effects of concussion syndrome get publicized.

 

[Carolina Hustler]

Nerf cover for helmets

http://www.helmethut.com/procap.jpg

 

[gary mexico]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

There were some really bad hits today on Desean Jackson and Todd Heap. It seems fines do nothing to prevent headhunting. While I agree football is a violent sport by trade, the players heads must be protected.

They should retire and play ping pong then. Too many times if i see a really good hit, there is a flag immediately even if it wasnt helmet to helmet, just a really good legal hit will get you a flag...

Leading with your helmet into another helmet isn't legal and is dirty

Maybe they should replace the football and throw/carry daisies around.

 

[elmanx]

I actually think football would be safer without any pads or hard helmets (like rugby). I guess they wear cups and sometimes those thin leather helmets, but otherwise that's it (I don't really know much about rugby, so I could be mistaken about this). I think defenders would not be launching themselves with such abandon if they had no protection themselves and that would lead to fewer of these types of injuries.

 

[Futility]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Get used to it or stop watching. With all the recent discoveries of CTE in former players, this trend won't be slowing down anytime soon.

 

[gary mexico]

I actually think football would be safer without any pads or hard helmets (like rugby). I guess they wear cups and sometimes those thin leather helmets, but otherwise that's it (I don't really know much about rugby, so I could be mistaken about this). I think defenders would not be launching themselves with such abandon if they had no protection themselves and that would lead to fewer of these types of injuries.

Maybe we should have weight limits, nobody over 200 pounds. Hows that for wussing the game up?

 

[Incogneto]

Suspensions.

Start with J. Harrison, that punk. Suspend him for 2 games. My guess is that he comes back doing less headhunting.

 

[elmanx]

I actually think football would be safer without any pads or hard helmets (like rugby). I guess they wear cups and sometimes those thin leather helmets, but otherwise that's it (I don't really know much about rugby, so I could be mistaken about this). I think defenders would not be launching themselves with such abandon if they had no protection themselves and that would lead to fewer of these types of injuries.

Maybe we should have weight limits, nobody over 200 pounds. Hows that for wussing the game up?

How does no helmets and pads wuss the game up? If it does anything, it would seem to be the opposite of this.

 

[NinerFan49]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

 

[gary mexico]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

 

[az_prof]

How about better helmets? The attempts to take hitting out of football is bad and it injects too much subjectivity into determining what exactly is a bad hit or intentional roughness. Improve the protective gear but don't take the aggression out of football.

 

[Todem]

That hit on Desean Jackson was brutal. He will be out for a long time. 4 weeks easy.

The game has become so violent. And the leading with the head has gotten out of hand.

I love football, I love the brutality of the game like most men. However I like it when it is clean and legal. The headhunting cheap shot punks are ruining the league and should be handed out heavy suspensions without pay. And if they are 3 time offenders they need to be kicked out of the league. 3 strikes and your out. That will send the right message that you will lose your job. Playing in the NFL is not a right, it is a privalige.

Football and sports in general should have no tolerance for animals.

 

[NinerFan49]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

If childish (and lame) attempts at humor are the best you can offer, your "know nothing" approach can only hinder the discussion. Concussions are a very serious problem in the NFL and more needs to be done to prevent them. The effects of brain damage are too serious to ignore.According to a NY Times article, Eagles safety Andre Waters's suicide was caused by brain damage that he sustained while playing football:

NY Times story (and a few excerpts):

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html...81130F93BA25752

Since the former National Football League player Andre Waters killed himself in November, an explanation for his suicide has remained a mystery. But after examining remains of Mr. Waters's brain, a neuropathologist in Pittsburgh is claiming that Mr. Waters had sustained brain damage from playing football and he says that led to his depression and ultimate death.

The neuropathologist, Dr. Bennet Omalu of the University of Pittsburgh, a leading expert in forensic pathology, determined that Mr. Waters's brain tissue had degenerated into that of an 85-year-old man with similar characteristics as those of early-stage Alzheimer's victims. Dr. Omalu said he believed that the damage was either caused or drastically expedited by successive concussions Mr. Waters, 44, had sustained playing football.

********

Studies of more than 2,500 former N.F.L. players by the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes, based at the University of North Carolina, found that cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's-like symptoms and depression rose proportionately with the number of concussions they had sustained. That information, combined with the revelations that Mr. Webster and Mr. Long suffered from mental impairment before their deaths, compelled Mr. Nowinski to promote awareness of brain trauma's latent effects.

*********

Another interesting story about how concussions have affected former N.O. Saints offensive lineman Kyle Turley (who is considering suing the NFL): http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ms-thegameface091809

 

[Steelfan7]

Suspensions.Start with J. Harrison, that punk. Suspend him for 2 games. My guess is that he comes back doing less headhunting.

I agree. Jerome Harrison is a punk.

 

[Tom Servo]

The headhunting cheap shot punks are ruining the league and should be handed out heavy suspensions without pay. And if they are 3 time offenders they need to be kicked out of the league. 3 strikes and your out. That will send the right message that you will lose your job. Playing in the NFL is not a right, it is a privalige.

Yeah, 'cuz THAT'S gonna happen.

 

[njherdfan]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

Would you also have been pissed at the NFL when they banned the "Night-Train necktie?" Or is that fine too?

 

[Steelfan7]

Go back to leather helmets. The league won't have to worry about players leading with their helmets then.

 

[Futility]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

Brain trauma. Seriously.I could enjoy football with a few more head/neck protections and a few less prayer circles during injury timeouts. If you can't, you might consider giving up the NFL and becoming a UFC fan.

 

[Tom Servo]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

Brain trauma. Seriously.I could enjoy football with a few more head/neck protections and a few less prayer circles during injury timeouts. If you can't, you might consider giving up the NFL and becoming a UFC fan.

Dude, you're being

 

[ROBOPUNTER]

There cannot be helmet to helmet hits if there are no helmets. This problem is easy to solve.

 

[GregR_2]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

Brain trauma. Seriously.I could enjoy football with a few more head/neck protections and a few less prayer circles during injury timeouts. If you can't, you might consider giving up the NFL and becoming a UFC fan.

Dude, you're being

Good posting. This is why we have an ignore list.

 

[gary mexico]

Ive seen the replay a couple of times. I dont think the defender gave jackson a cheap shot at all? Looks like he hit desean with his helmet and chest into deseans chest.

 

[MAC_32]

I'm not a fan of policing this unless it's beyond a reasonable doubt dirty, but if you are going to police it fines aren't working, you need to suspend them.

 

[gary mexico]

I'm not a fan of policing this unless it's beyond a reasonable doubt dirty, but if you are going to police it fines aren't working, you need to suspend them.

How is that a dirty hit? You have defenders running full speed arriving at the same time as the ball AND wr? Do you want the defender to all of a sudden try and run out of the way or make a hit to make sure the wr doesnt catch the ball??

 

[mbuehner]

There cannot be helmet to helmet hits if there are no helmets. This problem is easy to solve.

So we replace concussions with fractured skulls and broken jaws? Helmets exist for a reason, not having them will create more injuries, not less.

 

[gary mexico]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

If childish (and lame) attempts at humor are the best you can offer, your "know nothing" approach can only hinder the discussion.

That's all gm does. Ignore it.

I was being sarcastic to make a point...

 

[ROBOPUNTER]

I was being sarcastic to make a point...

a) the point was crappyb) leave sarcasm to professionalsc) don't do the rolleyes. Only girls do rolleyes

 

[Futility]

They shouldnt do a anything? Its friggin football!!! Im so sick of the announcers whining everytime a player gets laid out by a great hit. Just about everytime its a penalty against the defense for helmet to helmet and the replay shows the defensive guy is driving his shoulder into the wr. This isnt ping pong folks. Its bad enough we wuss up the country, do we have to do the same for football?

Protecting players from concussions is "wussing up" the game? Get a clue.Have someone hit you on the head with a baseball bat a few times and then see how tough you feel.

Ok, instead of having people run full speed have them walk fast, hows that?

Brain trauma. Seriously.I could enjoy football with a few more head/neck protections and a few less prayer circles during injury timeouts. If you can't, you might consider giving up the NFL and becoming a UFC fan.

Dude, you're being

We're in a thread where people are complaining that football isn't allowed to be physical enough, particularly regarding helmet to helmet hits, in a sport where a growing number of ex-players have been found to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (AKA brain damage). I think a lot of people have lost sight of reality. Whether or not you share this opinion is irrelevant, but the NFLPA, NFL Commissioner, & Congress seem to. If you want football to be less restrictive regarding head/neck collisions, you're not going to like the rule changes over the next decade.

 

[ROBOPUNTER]

There cannot be helmet to helmet hits if there are no helmets. This problem is easy to solve.

So we replace concussions with fractured skulls and broken jaws? Helmets exist for a reason, not having them will create more injuries, not less.

This isn't necessarily true. Broken jaws? Maybe. Taking away helmets, or replacing current ones with leather helmets will change the behaviour of the tackler. In fact in a few years/decades, I predict there will be vintage football leagues popping up (though they may not be for mass consumption like the NFL) much like vintage baseball leagues are in many places today.

 

[mbuehner]

There cannot be helmet to helmet hits if there are no helmets. This problem is easy to solve.

So we replace concussions with fractured skulls and broken jaws? Helmets exist for a reason, not having them will create more injuries, not less.

This isn't necessarily true. Broken jaws? Maybe. Taking away helmets, or replacing current ones with leather helmets will change the behaviour of the tackler. In fact in a few years/decades, I predict there will be vintage football leagues popping up (though they may not be for mass consumption like the NFL) much like vintage baseball leagues are in many places today.

Its not the intentional tackling technique that creates the requirement for helmets. Its two guys going up for the same ball at full speed and knocking each other unconscious. Or a running back lowering his head and bashing full speed into a linebacker lowering his head and breaking somebody's neck (helmets diffuse impacts on the spine as well). Helmets are important and have been great innovations. Just because they aren't silver bullets that can do everything perfectly doesn't mean they do more harm than good.

 

[ScottyFargo]

Saw a suggestion I agreed with on Twitter. If a helmet to helmet occurs and knocks a player out of a game, the offending player should be removed as well. I know Cribbs wasn't considered a defenseless receiver because he was running with the ball, but he was held up and Harrison took a cheap, unnecessary shot. Then he does it again?

On a day like today, where Cribbs, Massaquoi, Heap, and Jackson all suffer helmet to helmet hits, I hope will serve as a spark to immediately make a move to more seriously protect players.

Harrison isn't even remorseful:

"“I thought Cribbs was asleep,” said Harrison, the 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. “A hit like that geeks you up — it geeks everybody up — especially when you find out that the guy is not really hurt — he’s just sleeping. He’s knocked out, but he’s going to be OK. The other guy, I didn’t hit that hard, to be honest with you. When you get a guy on the ground, it’s a perfect tackle.”

There needs to be a culture change. That's a disgusting and uneducated attitude.

 

[Steve Tasker]

Peens doing the lord's work in here.

 

[MAC_32]

I'm not a fan of policing this unless it's beyond a reasonable doubt dirty, but if you are going to police it fines aren't working, you need to suspend them.

How is that a dirty hit? You have defenders running full speed arriving at the same time as the ball AND wr? Do you want the defender to all of a sudden try and run out of the way or make a hit to make sure the wr doesnt catch the ball??

What are you talking about? I was speaking in general, not specific to any play. The 3 concussions I saw today were the two in the Browns game + the DeSean one - none of them were dirty.

 

[NinerFan49]

We're in a thread where people are complaining that football isn't allowed to be physical enough, particularly regarding helmet to helmet hits, in a sport where a growing number of ex-players have been found to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (AKA brain damage). I think a lot of people have lost sight of reality. Whether or not you share this opinion is irrelevant, but the NFLPA, NFL Commissioner, & Congress seem to. If you want football to be less restrictive regarding head/neck collisions, you're not going to like the rule changes over the next decade.

The sooner the NFL takes action, the better. They've known this was a serious problem for years now. If takes a class action law suit from former players to spur them to action, I hope it's filed soon.

 

[cvnpoka]

it should stay like it is: the steelers are allowed and no one else is.

 

[elmanx]

Helmets are important and have been great innovations. Just because they aren't silver bullets that can do everything perfectly doesn't mean they do more harm than good.

I'm not entirely sure this is true. If you look at sports like rugby or aussie rules football, you have big athletic guys hitting each other at full speed all the time. I'm not sure that their injury rates are significantly worse (if anyone has found good data on this it would be interesting).

 

[FreeBaGeL]

The only way to eliminate helmet to helmet contact is to eliminate big hits entirely. To hit someone hard, you have to lower your head and put your shoulder into it. When you do this, you're committed and you can't see the player anymore, so when the offensive player lowers his head to prepare for the hit you can easily end up colliding heads with each other even though that was never the defenders intention.

I think anyone that believes players are intentionally trying to hit people helmet to helmet and be "dirty" is off their rocker. The difference between a "dirty" helmet to helmet hit and a good clean hard hit is usually nothing more than a bit of luck.

 

[mbuehner]

Helmets are important and have been great innovations. Just because they aren't silver bullets that can do everything perfectly doesn't mean they do more harm than good.

I'm not entirely sure this is true. If you look at sports like rugby or aussie rules football, you have big athletic guys hitting each other at full speed all the time. I'm not sure that their injury rates are significantly worse (if anyone has found good data on this it would be interesting).

1.Rugby is not as high speed a game by any means and you don't see the types of collisions you see in football on a regular basis. Most of the big collisions seem to happen on passing plays.2.Rugby has a serious concussion problem of its own.

3.Rugby has some very good athletes but I don't know how many 6.5 300 pounders that run sub 5 40s they have. Pro football is a different beast than anything else on this planet.

 

[Northbound Train]

Am I in the Twilight Zone or has NBC asked Harrison + Dungy 3x now "how does the league police such hits"....

I mean do they have no other material to continually ask one of the NFLs dirtiest player ever how did he handle it...it's like Jim Rome spinning the same topic 20 different ways

 

[ScottyFargo]

I think anyone that believes players are intentionally trying to hit people helmet to helmet and be "dirty" is off their rocker. The difference between a "dirty" helmet to helmet hit and a good clean hard hit is usually nothing more than a bit of luck.

The attitude shown by Harrison is enlightening and works against this idea. Maybe it's not entirely intentional, however the point is he's glowing in the action and doesn't recognize the potential for long term permanent damage, and in fact even writes it off as "sleep."Rodney Harrison on SNF just said that the only thing that impacted him was a suspension. Fines are meaningless to the players, but missing time and affecting games/teammates hits home.

 

[Grigs Allmoon]

Brain trauma. Seriously.

I could enjoy football with a few more head/neck protections and a few less prayer circles during injury timeouts. If you can't, you might consider giving up the NFL and becoming a UFC fan.

Dude, you're being

Good posting. This is why we have an ignore list.

As far as the rules go, I think they need to start "encouraging" the defenders keep their facemask up. That's the first thing you learn in Pop Warner, and it would really help fix things. I understand sometimes a helmet to helmet hit is unavoidable (WR ducks, etc.) but when the defender puts his head down and isn't even looking where he is lunging at (See: hit on Heap) then it's obvious you aren't trying to control your hitting.

The NFL needs to start hading out 1 game suspensions for this stuff.

 

[elmanx]

Helmets are important and have been great innovations. Just because they aren't silver bullets that can do everything perfectly doesn't mean they do more harm than good.

I'm not entirely sure this is true. If you look at sports like rugby or aussie rules football, you have big athletic guys hitting each other at full speed all the time. I'm not sure that their injury rates are significantly worse (if anyone has found good data on this it would be interesting).

1.Rugby is not as high speed a game by any means and you don't see the types of collisions you see in football on a regular basis. Most of the big collisions seem to happen on passing plays.2.Rugby has a serious concussion problem of its own.

3.Rugby has some very good athletes but I don't know how many 6.5 300 pounders that run sub 5 40s they have. Pro football is a different beast than anything else on this planet.

Responding to your points1. My position is that we have the high speed helmet to helmet hits precisely because of the helmets and protective gear. Take this stuff away and the defender isn't going to be launching himself around so recklessly.

2. I'm sure rugby players have concussions as well. Thanks for the link. I'm just wondering if anyone has compared it head to head with american football. But if what you're suggesting is true, and that brain and spine injures are more common in rugby, then I would agree would agree with you that helmets are the way to go. I just really don't know for sure. But I think your link was helpful.

3. Normally the "dirty" (if you want to call them that) hits we're talking about aren't made by the really huge 300 lb guys. It's DBs and linebackers launching themselves into receivers.

As an aside, I thought that the last paragraph in the link you provided actually is very similar to the way I'm looking at this.

"Apart from the mouthguard, protective gear in the game of rugby was always frowned upon. Equipment such as padded vests to soften the blows of tackles and headgear to prevent “cauliflower ears” and head injuries, were viewed as unnecessary and irrelevant to the sport. But today, players are proud of donning their vests, headgear and mouthguards and, as a result, play the game more fiercely. "

 

[GregR_2]

There cannot be helmet to helmet hits if there are no helmets. This problem is easy to solve.

So we replace concussions with fractured skulls and broken jaws? Helmets exist for a reason, not having them will create more injuries, not less.

This isn't necessarily true. Broken jaws? Maybe. Taking away helmets, or replacing current ones with leather helmets will change the behaviour of the tackler. In fact in a few years/decades, I predict there will be vintage football leagues popping up (though they may not be for mass consumption like the NFL) much like vintage baseball leagues are in many places today.

In 1905, 18 football players were killed and 159 seriously injured. There were not nearly as many people playing football back then, so that's an even larger number for the day than it is for us. The majority of the injuries were cracked skulls and bleeding in the brain.College football started to require them in 1939. A doctor at the time said that brain subdermal hematomas (bleeding in the brain), one of the major causes of death and injury, had been reduced by 70% by the requirement of helmets.Before helmets and even before modern technology in helmets, a lot of people died and had life-changing injuries. And it would be worse today. Players today are specialized for the role they play. They are bigger, faster, and stronger. Significantly so. World class sprinter times are a full 10% faster in the 100m than they were in the early 1900s. World records for weight lifting have more than doubled since then.In short... it would be a horrible idea. Injuries would be through the roof. I think our modern Sports Center highlight society is a big part of the problem. Maybe this is just my selective memory, but I don't remember kill shots like we regularly see launched now. They seem to me to have become common place at the same time that celebrations after a big play became common place... after players saw that doing something that made for a good highlight would make them stand out, get them fame and celebrity and endorsements. I don't see anyone calling for an end to aggression in football. But aggression that is unnecessarily unsafe, or that doesn't actually play a part in stopping the other team from advancing the ball... there's no reason to allow it any more than there is reason to allow hitting players 5 seconds after the whistle blows. As Rodney Harrison indicated, they can teach players to aim lower in delivering a hit to avoid going for the head. They can still hit just as hard, just don't spear and don't go for the head.

 

[The Jerk]

Saw a suggestion I agreed with on Twitter. If a helmet to helmet occurs and knocks a player out of a game, the offending player should be removed as well.

This is a completely impractical idea. Teams can trot out their 5th WR and have the QB lollipop toss the ball out to him so that he gets whacked by a player. Then he "just happens" to be knocked out of the game.I haven't seen anyone mention that QBs need to do a better job of not leading their receivers into defenders. The DeSean Jackson and Massaquoi hits were enabled by awful decisions compounded by lazy throws that led both players directly into their hits.I understand why people think Harrison's comments were inappropriate, but in a brutally physical game, it should not exactly be a surprise that a linebacker exults in a big hit. The macho mentality doesn't excuse cheap shots, but it does explain certain comments and gestures. Most of us can probably remember a DB or LB counting receivers out after hard hits on passes over the middle. That's about equivalent to Harrison's comments.Specific to Harrison's actual hits, I thought the Cribbs hit was a legitimate tackle of a RB (which Cribbs was on that play). If you don't want a player of Cribbs' build/stature to take a hit like that, don't run him off tackle in the wildcat. Sorry. And really, Cribbs lowered his head or was forced to lower his head by the initial contact by someone on his right side before Harrison hit him from his left side. The Massaquoi hit I thought was excessive, as it looked like he loaded up and raised his forearms up higher than normal. However, it's easy to point details like that out in slow-motion replay. Plays unfold just a little bit quickly on the field, don't you think?To me, while I don't want to see players with brain damage in their retirement, there still has to be thought given as to how much of an advantage to give receivers and the passing game. If receivers are free to roam the middle of the field without fear of a big hit, then the defense is at a significant disadvantage. I realize a "deterrent" can be given without headhunting, but the problem is there's no easy way to consistently demarcate what is good, tough football from what is "thug" behavior, as an earlier poster described it.