In the short time you've been here I've come to the conclusion you either understand very little about the game of futball or you're legally blind.
Bottom line: Should Smith have been suspended and penalized? Yes. Should Willis be suspended and penalized? Yes.
The Smith hit on Boldin was far more egregious. I guess Willis will get fined, but a suspension would be out of line.
Willis didn't need anyone to push Smith's head into his helmet, Smith did. Smith's intention was the torso. Not arguing at all that the spear is illegal, which is why Willis deserves the exact same punishment that Smith received.
How do we know Eric Smith's intention was Boldin's torso? The league office is certainly not going to make that assumption. It wouldn't matter anyway. Eric Smith launched himself at a defenseless player. After the league examines the play it may be determined that Brad Smith was in a defenseless posture. If that is the case, and the league is certain there was helmet-to-helmet contact, then Willis will get fined. But, boy, I still find the Eric Smith hit to have been worse. (Interestingly, I own one Jets jersey- a Brad Smith one. A lot of people here know that my favorite player is Anquan Boldin. I didn't find it to be enjoyable to see players I like get pulverized.) From page 194 of the official rule book under Rule 12, Section 2, Article 8 on unnecessary roughness-
Any word on Brad Smith? Can he still walk, think, and breath? Been eerily quiet, on Smith, Did he have Mri's CT's or any testing?
That to me was the most amazing part. I figured he was getting back up when I noticed the ball was still in his grasp after the hit. Just didn't know if he had any injuries, just knew he would walk off the field. He'll be ok. Reminded me of the hit on Boldin.
Any receiver could then be classified as a defenseless receiver... this is football, this happens. There is no way to really know what Eric Smith's intentions are, I'll concede that but it also doesn't defeat my point. Watch the video, without Kerry Rhodes hitting Boldin from behind, Smith is more than likely hitting Boldin right in the chest, where Boldin's hands would be in trying to catch the ball, like defensive backs hitting receivers going for a catch like that usually do. You can't judge based on the slow motion video, since the game moves much faster than that. There is no way Smith, who was already in tackling form, could've anticipated Rhodes knocking Boldin's head right into line with his helmet. From my perspective, that was a freak accident. With that said, the Willis hit was not as brutal as the Smith hit, but if you watch the replay, Willis lines up Smith UNAIDED! He literally helmet spears Smith as Smith is coming at him. If you ask me, the Willis hit was worse. Willis should be suspended, or thrown over the side of a cliff. The NFL had better not have used Eric Smith as a scapegoat. If you're going to enforce a helmet-to-helmet rule, then do the right thing and enforce it.
What is the above portion of your post in reference to? I did provide actual wording from the league's official rulebook. Boldin was clearly in a defenseless position because he was trying to catch a pass. B. Smith may be considered to have been in a defenseless position. The league could say that the other defender was in the process of tackling Smith. Who really knows. There are things in the rule book that will make your head spin. We might have to wait till Friday when the league hands out fines and suspensions. We'll agree to disagree as to which hit was worse.
Defenseless receiver has nothing to do with helmet-to-helmet contact, which is exactly what both guys did, which is exactly why both guys should be punished. The difference is Willis didn't need anyone to line up the hit for him, Smith did. But Smith will still end up being the scapegoat because he is a Jet and not an NFL celebrity like Willis.
It's possible. The thing is it was such a bang-bang play. It wasn't as if Smith's forward progress had been stopped and a full second or two had elapsed. We'll have to wait for I guess Friday to see if Willis gets the same punishment as Eric Smith. There are good arguments both for and against it.
So anytime a player jumps for a ball he is in a defenseless position? The rules regarding these types of plays really has to be re-examined this offseason. I personally like guys playing football. I also believe neither Smith nor Willis should be fined for their hits because they were playing football like they were taught. I do not want players to get hurt, but this is a violent contact sport. Now I believe many of can tell if a player "spears" someone on purpose. Save the fines and discipline for those types of plays.
Basically until the ball arrives there, yeah. Defenders cannot attack and hit receivers until they have the ball in their hands. If they could, there would be almost no passing in the NFL. I can understand people wanting Willis to get the same punishment as Eric Smith. What I cannot understand is that some people feel Eric Smith did nothing wrong.
stop being pussies. the hit on boldin AND the hit on bradly were awsome hits. would love to see more of it. the game has gotten so soft its pathetic. let em shoot up. let em hit. for christ sake let em play fn football.
