Over the past few years the NFL has been on a mission to make the game of football safe…or as safe as it can be when you’re talking about freakishly large athletes throwing themselves against one another. They have tackled the issues of protecting defenseless receivers, blows to the head and have even taken the jock-strap off of the quarterbacks in exchange for a bib and a diaper.
I will admit the game is more fun to watch when NFL caliber quarterbacks are under center as opposed to being on the injury reserve list, but there is one area the NFL seems to be hesitant to take a hard stance against — those old fashion dirty players.
I’m not talking about the guys who occasionally will get a flag for a helmet to helmet or who may be a little too mouthy for their own good. I’m talking about those guys who repeatedly go out of their way to almost intentionally injure another player. Be it kicking, punching or going low against a guy clearly not in the play; these types of players make these types of plays on an almost routine basis.
Basically, I’m talking about the Ndamukong Suh’s of the NFL.
Suh, a defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions, is the poster-child for all cheap shot artists in the NFL. He has repeatedly been in the cross-hairs of the league the past three years for an assortment of actions that have no place in the game. The two that stick out the most is when Suh was fined $30,000 last season for kicking Houston Texans QB Matt Shaub in the groin area and when he was suspended for two games in 2011 for stomping on Green Bay’s Evan Dietrich-Smith.
This past Sunday Suh added to his list when — after a Lions interception — he turned and hit Minnesota Vikings center John Sullivan in the side of the knee. The move was as cheap as they come because Sullivan and Suh were nowhere near the ball when it happened. Luckily, Sullivan wasn’t injured and a penalty was called, negating a Lions touchdown.
On Tuesday, Suh got the news that he was being fined $100,000 for the play.
It’s not nearly enough.
I’m all for fining players who make plays that are detrimental to the league’s new safety protocols. With most players, a few fines are enough to get the point across. For Suh, however, it doesn’t appear that the loss of dollars is sinking in very fast as he continually shows a blatant disregard for other player’s safety.
I think it’s time for the NFL to start taking it to the next level and suspending players who make repeated violations like the ones Suh is guilty of. And I’m not talking one or two games but large chunks, like four or more, depending on the type and frequency of violations.
Instead of the large fine, the NFL should have suspended Suh for four games, minimum, for his hit on Sullivan. That hit just emphasis a pattern of behavior that won’t be rectified by just taking money.
Mark my words; Suh will do this type of play again in the near future and when it happens the league will need to crack down and get this guy off the field. If not just for the safety of the other players, then the league should do it for Suh himself; the guy just can’t seem to control himself on the field.
James LeBeau is a contributor for CraveOnline Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @Jlebeau76 or subscribe on Facebook.com/CraveOnlineSports.
Photo Credit: Getty
