An Ode to the new Sissified Hypocritical NFL

[Peyton]

"The fundamentally old way of wrapping up and tackling seems to have faded away. A lot of the increase is from hits to blow guys up. That has become a more popular way of doing it." - Ray Anderson, NFL VP of Football Operations

"Yes, we are concerned they are getting away from the fundamentals of tackling, and maybe it has been coached that way. We're going to have to look into talking to our coaches." - Ray Anderson, NFL VP of Football Operations

In honor of Ray Anderson, I'd like to review some of the old time "fundamental" tacklers, as glorified by NFL Films and presented on NFL Network.

#10 Most Feared Tackler - John Lynch - this is a guy who specialized in launching himself like a spear into the head of opposing receivers and also launching himself into guys who were being held up by teammates, a couple of fine examples of which are illustrated in this clip (including a shot of him putting his own brother in law to sleep)




#6 Most Feared Tackler - Jack Tatum - This is a guy that paralyzed Daryl Stingley with a brutal helmet to helmet hit in a preseason game. His other most famous play was a vicious helmet to helmet hit on a Vikings WR in the Super Bowl that knocked the players helmet completely off. The guy was so brutal that he earned the nickname "The Assassin".





#5 Most Feared Tackler - Hardy Brown - This dude specialized in sending guys to the hospital by launching his shoulder into dude's faces. Not sure why he didn't prefer the helmet to helmet stuff, but I'm sure it had to do with the fact that they didn't have face masks when he was playing. He openly brags about knocking out 75 to 80 guys in his career and tells a funny story about a bounty being put on himself in this clip.





#4 Most Feared Tackler - Ronnie Lott - What needs to be said about Ronnie Lott? Dude gave more forearms to the heads of defenseless WRs than any player in the history of football. I am going to throw in a bonus cheap shot on an overthrown ball to Mark Bavaro, just for fun.








#2 Most Feared Tackler - Dick Lane - Originator of the "Night Train Necktie". Scariest DB ever. Known for making vicious blows to the heads of the WRs.





#1 Most Feared Tackler - Dick Butkus - This guy routinely tried to rip the heads off of ball carries and was also famous for biting people during play. You know, the "fundamentals".





So.....yeah......it's a shame that the fundamentals of tacking are falling off.

Give me a break.

[Dale4Saul2Red0]

Players are faster and stronger than ever. Something has to be done about these hits and the NFL is being proactive about it. What are they supposed to do wait until someone dies? The business decision to implement this "rule" about cracking down on these types of violent hits is a great one. Fans seem to be split on the issue and while I was once on the side saying that the league is starting to "pansify" the game I now believe they are taking the necessary steps to protect these football players. They don't want Congress breathing down their neck like they were doing with the MLB. Also I don't like your Ronnie Lott comparison. He tackled textbook even when he didn't wrap. Wasn't leading with the helmet and put his shoulder right into your chest. Even on that Bavaro hit he kept his head up, led with the shoulder, and I don't think he was aiming for the head Bavaro was just falling down and he caught him that way. That raises the only problem I see with the "rule" they are now implementing, how are they going to gauge what is clean and what isn't? How are they going to be consistent?

The game is still going to be a violent one because that is just what it is, but anything to discourage the whole leading with the helmet and hitting players high when doing so is a good move.

[USAF HART]

All I want to know is, what will be the new area of "aiming" on an opposing player? Should it be the unprotected stomach area, so that a helmet to stomach hit ruptures vital internal organs? Should it be the legs? Letting the defenders lower their heads, exposing the top of the helmet to full on speed contact from a knee? Say the defender reaches the ball carrier first, you are looking at career ending ACL's, MCL's PCL's, broken knee caps, broken fibulas, etc. There is no "good" area of target on an NFL player.

[Peyton]

(10-19-2010 05:09 PM)Dale4Saul2Red0 Wrote:  Players are faster and stronger than ever. Something has to be done about these hits and the NFL is being proactive about it. What are they supposed to do wait until someone dies? The business decision to implement this "rule" about cracking down on these types of violent hits is a great one. Fans seem to be split on the issue and while I was once on the side saying that the league is starting to "pansify" the game I now believe they are taking the necessary steps to protect these football players. They don't want Congress breathing down their neck like they were doing with the MLB. Also I don't like your Ronnie Lott comparison. He tackled textbook even when he didn't wrap. Wasn't leading with the helmet and put his shoulder right into your chest. Even on that Bavaro hit he kept his head up, led with the shoulder, and I don't think he was aiming for the head Bavaro was just falling down and he caught him that way. That raises the only problem I see with the "rule" they are now implementing, how are they going to gauge what is clean and what isn't? How are they going to be consistent?

The game is still going to be a violent one because that is just what it is, but anything to discourage the whole leading with the helmet and hitting players high when doing so is a good move.

Your kind of missing my point. I'm not arguing with the rule changes. I am making fun of the league for glorifying players who knocked guys out, bit fingers, broke necks, and sent guys to the hospital for years with dirty play and then implying that there is a recent "fading away of the fundamentals".

Just tell it like it is. There is too much money invested in these players now, and they don't want them to get hurt.

They should just put flags on them. Only way they are going to accomplish what they want to accomplish. If a player is running full steam at James Harrison, there is no way for Harrison to hit him without doing some damage, it is going to happen.

[Peyton]

(10-19-2010 05:21 PM)USAF HART Wrote:  All I want to know is, what will be the new area of "aiming" on an opposing player? Should it be the unprotected stomach area, so that a helmet to stomach hit ruptures vital internal organs? Should it be the legs? Letting the defenders lower their heads, exposing the top of the helmet to full on speed contact from a knee? Say the defender reaches the ball carrier first, you are looking at career ending ACL's, MCL's PCL's, broken knee caps, broken fibulas, etc. There is no "good" area of target on an NFL player.

That's what I've wondered all along. At the rate both players were traveling yesterday, there was no place Dunta could have hit Jackson that wasn't going to hurt him. None.

[Radical]

Speaking of lighting people up. Anyone have any footage of Nobis in his day?

[Tandy]

That hit was almost identical to the one Harry took earlier this year - only Harry was launched at.

This whole thing of making a Falcon player the example is typical NFL hypocritical BS anyway!

[Dale4Saul2Red0]

(10-19-2010 05:23 PM)Peyton Wrote:  Your kind of missing my point. I'm not arguing with the rule changes. I am making fun of the league for glorifying players who knocked guys out, bit fingers, broke necks, and sent guys to the hospital for years with dirty play and then implying that there is a recent "fading away of the fundamentals".

Just tell it like it is. There is too much money invested in these players now, and they don't want them to get hurt.

They should just put flags on them. Only way they are going to accomplish what they want to accomplish. If a player is running full steam at James Harrison, there is no way for Harrison to hit him without doing some damage, it is going to happen.

I still agree with the notion that "fundamentals are fading". Look through each generation you always had your head hunters and hard hitters, but the biggest flaw I see in the "fading of fundamentals" are the missed tackles, not the big hits. So in the regard the NFL and people have it backwards when they point to "lack of fundamentals" for these big hits. Most of your head hunter, hard hitting guys tackle textbook 95% of the time and still pop you good but if they see a window they lay down the law!

[JOEinPHX]

I think the NFL has a second agenda here that isn't getting any attention. Publicly, it's about protecting players (read: investments), and I'm OK with that. But privately, I think the league office also sees this as another way to emphasize the offense - more big plays, more scoring, more non-violent highlights, better pub. Handcuffing the defense is inconsequential.

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There's a third agenda as well. The long-term effects of concussion and head injuries is a huge skeleton that's still mostly in the NFL's closet. It's coming out now though, and it won't be stopped. The league hasn't been particularly proactive on the issue in the past, but now I think they see no other option.

[nativefalcon]

I understand the fine which I agree with Rodney Harrison, Fining a player like Dunta who just got a 57 million deal is like a slap on the wrist. If you want to fine them, don't cost them money, suspend them for a game. But at the same time it was a bang bang hit and if you look at it, it was a legal hit. It just sounded like a car wreck. Dunta didn't try to do that hit, he just reacted.

Also I can understand all these rules for college and younger, because their not making money off of it. The NFL players get paid millions, they know the risk. What they need to do is make the equipment better, They have changed things but overall its the same.

Because Personally the way its going, i'm not going to watch guys getting paid millions of dollars with BS rules, you might as well wrap their ass in bubble wrap. Its why Nascar went in the shitter too.

The game is getting too offensive run, taking too many things away from the defense.