There are those who firmly believe the wave of political correctness washing across the NFL this season is the beginning of a long downbound train for the great game. It is fine and admirable for the league to place an emphasis on the diagnosis and treatment of concussions. And no one would argue about a drive toward safer game equipment, especially equipment that provides protection for the head and neck.
But by making hard hits a point of emphasis for game officials the League has planted the seeds for an erosion of its fan base. Tackling and blocking are physical acts intended to mimic violent physical contact. Coaches for years have emphasized that good football is analogous to hard hitting in tackling and blocking. Now some off-the-field types are telling the sport that it is too violent. Players are being penalized for "rough play." I actually heard a game official use those exact words.
Ed Reed, the Hall-of-Fame-bound safety of the Baltimore Ravens, has been the number one victim of the League crackdown. Today it was announced that Reed is being fined again, this time for a fourth quarter hit on Victor Cruz of the Giants. That play was so over-emphasized by highlight announcers that it became nauseating. First, you must understand that until the PC crowd got their foot in the door, that hit would have been perfectly legal and would have been shown on NFL films as an example of how hard the hitting is in the Good Ole NFL. Reed's intention was to hit Cruz hard enough to make him drop the ball, which he had gotten his hands on an instant before Reed made contact. It worked. Cruz could not hang on and the pass went incomplete. Then in came a very late flag and the Ravens were penalized. Now the penalty has been increased by adding a $55,000.00 fine to Reed's list of previous fines. The on-air announcers at first described the hit as hard and legal but then they remembered their league talking points and started mouthing that, oh yeah, his helmet did eventually hit Cruz and that made it illegal and you know, wasn't that an awful thing for Ed Reed to do.
Reed has once again been named to the Pro Bowl. He is such a dangerous and effective player that teams devise game plans around his presence. Two years ago he missed the first six games of the season due to injury and still lead the league in interceptions. Raven Coach John Harbaugh has to hold his breath, however, when Reed makes an interception because there is a 100% chance he will return the interception. Against the Red Skins he made a decisive interception in the endzone by leaping high in the air and catching the ball with both hands, then falling to the ground. Five yards deep in the endzone, flat on his back, Reed did not just lay there and take a well-earned touchback. instead, he jumped up, narrowly avoided being hit in the endzone and returned the ball out to the 25-yard-line. One of his favorite ploys is to lateral the ball to a teammate when he is about to be tackled. He has done it so often on interceptions that other defensive backs start trailing him on the returns, staying in position to take such a lateral. Once or twice this has resulted in a fumble that was recovered by the other team. Too bad; Reed won't stop doing it.
He is a great player. He has never been a dirty player. After putting the hit on Cruz he jumped to his feet and offered Cruz a hand to help him up. He always plays hurt. The NFL needs to stop gussying up to the PC crowd and remember who its fans are; i.e., who are the ones paying the bills. That would be the fans. Do you think there will be nearly as many of them if the game begins to resemble flag football?
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