NFL – The League might suspend players for helmet-to-helmet hits

Football, as played in the United States, is one of the most violent and aggressive sports on the planet. Perhaps, excluding the Martial Arts and boxing, only Rugby comes anywhere close to the sort of hits that players exposed themselves to in every game.

The danger is out there. Liability-wise, football players are among the most prone to injury players in the professional athlete world. Although there has been a very significant improvement in terms of regulation and plain simple understanding that professional careers are at risk at every play, there is still a long way to go in making this game as safe for the players at it is entertaining for the fans.

This morning, NFL vice president of football operations, Ray Anderson has stated that the NFL is working its way to formulate new rules that would start suspending players for extremely dangerous helmet-to-helmet hits like the ones we saw this last Sunday.

Of course, it will be NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell who’s final word would decide if these sort of sanctions are taken into practice in the next following weeks. The NFL commissioner and the delegates will have to take a work with the professional football players’ union in order to take make this new adjustment. As of press time, the NFL has limit itself to fine players for their dangerous hits.

And yet, we all know that such measures are not the answer as despite the considerable amounts involved in the fines, these guys are extremely wealthy athletes who don’t seem to mind too much when it comes to hitting and paying cash. Now, may the new rule pass, and then they would have to deal with suspension. That’s a whole different story.

Let’s just take a look at what happened this Sunday. The Atlanta Falcons’ Dunta Robinson hit the Philadelphia Eagles’ DeSean Jackson with extreme aggressiveness. The hit knocked them out of the game. Reports on Jackson condition are still uncertain but there are rumors that there might be a bit of a head injury and some degree of concussion.

On the other hand, 6 feet, 242 lbs. Linebacker James Harrison from the Pittsburgh Stealers sidelined two players from the Cleveland Browns with head injuries. They better start suspending players, because this guys are making at least a couple million dollars a year, and a $10,000 fine is really not making a difference.