Is there unnecessary violence in football?...?

Question

Should/would penalties added onto the ball field be welcomed or would it dilute the quality of the game?

Are there enough penalties to protect the players on the field with penalties for late hits, roughing the kicker, etc.?

Is violence in football just part of the game....?

Stingley's Life Served as Cruel Lesson
Players Getting 'Jacked Up' Nothing to Celebrate
By IRA MILLER
AOL
Sports Commentary

The death this week of former New England wide receiver Darryl Stingley should serve as a wakeup call and a reminder to all of us -- those violent hits we cheer every weekend are very, very real.

Twenty-nine years ago this summer, Stingley was a promising, 26-year-old wide receiver with the Patriots . Jack Tatum was a 28-year-old star safety with the Oakland Raiders . John Madden, at 42, was the successful Raiders coach embarking on his 10th season.

Stingley, once a first-round draft choice with speed and promise, fell to the ground in a heap. He never got up. His career was over, never able to catch another pass or run another pattern. He spent the rest of his days in a wheelchair, a quadriplegic.

Tatum, previously selected to three consecutive Pro Bowls, became known for a single play, legal under the rules (although he didn't help himself later with a book titled, "They Call Me Assassin"). He has had health problems of his own in recent years.

Madden, who spent considerable time by Stingley's bedside in the hospital and became very close to him, clearly was affected. Although Madden said it was not the reason he retired from coaching after that season, he said the Tatum-Stingley play "hit me hard just as a human being."

Answer 1

Tatum's hit was fair and legal in every way on Stingley. No penalty could have been called.

Answer 2

It is called unnecessary roughness, and it is ruining the game for the defensive players. The game might turn into two hand touch if the trend continues. You used to be able to close line someone, a RB ran into the wrong sideline and a lineman lite him up. Now a days if your helmet touches another helmet then it is a penalty. They are also treating the Qbs like babies. Why dont you just put skirts on them? The don't let the defensive lineman do anything to the quarterback. As for Stingley, it was really his fault. If you watch the play Stingley had his head down preparing for contact, the biggest mistake that you can make in football, one that often leads to paralysis, and even death. Jack Tatums hit was perfectly legal, and those are the kind of hits that football is loved for.

Answer 3

They have enough penalties already. They are doing alot more now to protect QB's especially around the knees. If things become problems the NFL addresses them, then they filter down through the lower levels if necessary. Tatum's hit on Stingley was legal. But why he wont just come out and say Im Sorry that it ended up that way? I have no idea, i dont think he has anything to apologize for when it comes to foul play or a cheap shot, he didnt do anything wrong. But is it sooo hard to show a little compassion it seems a little classless that he is so stubborn as to not even say "I am sorry that he ended up paralyzed and that things played out the way they did." Nope, all he says is, i didnt do anything wrong. The same response you would get from a child. I believe the rules in the NFL, college, and high school football are good but i believe that more teams and more schools need to teach alot more about respect.

Answer 4

They already protect the players ENTIRELY to much. Last season i can recall 2 games where a team was completely dicked out of winning b/c of bad calls of "roughing the quarterback". Its getting ridiculous and they need to loosen up and let them play. Listen, injuries are inevitable, they happen in basketball and baseball (for the most part non contact sports) and they will obviously be higher in football b/c of the contact and strength of these guys. It sucks, but its impossible to get rid of them and still make the game enjoyable. Im already tired of all the bs penalties like helmet to helmet and hitting a defenseless receiver. I mean yeah those are good rules but the meaning of the rules are being used in the wrong way. You see DB's jumping in the air and then a WR going for the ball and the guys helmets touch (which is impossible to prevent) and its a damn penalty. Its just horrible. There needs to be ALOT more leniancy in the game, the QB's need to quit being protected so damn much, and some of these rules need to quit being enforced in the wrong way.

Example: Last year Mathias Kiwanuka of the NYG had Vince Young in his grip on what wouldve (well most likely barring a miracle) ended the game and he didnt slam him to the ground b/c he did not want to receive a penalty (that wouldve given the TItans a 1st down) so therefore he releases him but the whistle never blew and although the Giants were practically walking off the field Vince Young runs for a 1st down that eventually led to the GW TD. That is just absolutely stupid and it ruined an entire game (and made Young look alot better than he really is).

Justin Smith for the Bengals had a normal sack on the QB and there was absolutely nothing rough about it (Tampa Bay i believe). Well this is while the Bengals were up in the 4th quarter and it was 3rd down when Smith got the sack which pretty much iced the game (again barring a miracle) b/c it was within the final 2-3 minutes. Again the hit was completely legal and the ref somehow threw a flag for roughing the passing, i have no idea why and he could never explain himself to me b/c there is nothing he could say to convince me Smith did anything wrong. The Bucs were GIVEN the 1st down and put them on like the 20 yd line in which they went on to score the GW TD. Another game that was completely ruined b/c of the horrendous calls and the bs of "protecting" players so damn much that it dilutes the game.

Answer 5

Enuff of Tatum-Stingley already. It was a clean, legal hit.

One of the big things in todays NFL is the helmet to helmet contact. They key factor is the intent, not actually the contact. Incidental contact of helmets usually goes unflagged, it is when the tackler leads with the helmet or lowers the helmet intentailly, it gets flagged.

Someone mentioned a few plays in question regarding QBs and helmet contact. Watch some vids of those plays. You'll notice the before mentioned, lowering of the head, right before contact, even if it looks like a miniscual lowering, it is in 99% of the cases, intenional.

There is a difference between tackling and driving into the ground. The general public might not see a difference, thinking that they are the same, they are most certainly not. Tackling to the ground is generally a fluid motion in most cases. Driving into the ground is tackling and adding extra force at the end. See the difference?

Answer 6

I am a Pats fan and I'll try to answer this as fairly as I can. The hit Tatum put on Stingly was fair by the NFL Rules of that year. Tatum kind of killed himself with the book that he wrote later on. It sucks to see good up and coming players go down so quickly.

I do think that violence is part of the game in football or any sport. Guess it was just a freak accident. Prime example, a Boston Univ. freshman hockey player takes the ice for his first shift of college hockey and hits the boards head first. He gets paralized from the neck down.

The players know the things that can happen to them. To Stingley RIP.

Answer 7

The origin of American football is in the history of the world's most popular sport: soccer. When soccer -- more universaly known as "football" (which of course makes sense because soccer players use their feet) -- participants decided to change their centuries-old game with restrictions such as the no-use of hand rules, people who disliked this broke away to create rugby. In the states we have created our own version of the game under the same old name "football" with more of a rugby style, the whole time forgetting why we call it that. Here are other answers: American football is a derivative of rugby football, and while the feet are used more often in rugby than on the gridiron, much of the game is still played by handling the ball. Both variations are still considered football. North America style football didn't used to allow the "forward pass" and much more of the play involved foot work, such as the "drop kick" and the running punt kick. In the first rules, only the " side pass" was allowed, as long as the two players were side by side, with no forward motion of the ball, similar to rugby rules. The Canadian Football League ( CFL ) still allows a drop kick to score a field goal, and also has a thing called a "rouge" when the kicker is able to kick the ball thru the end zone, so it lands out of play , it is worth 2 points. Both the NFL and the CFL still have the drop-kick available as a weapon - on the point-after-touchdown, or from the field for 3 points. The "rouge" is worth a single point in Canada.

Answer 8

Nobody is forcing anyone to play pro sports, in fact football is a pretty good paycheck for 4 months work. If the player thinks it is too violent, he should be coaching not playing. Keep the game fair and competitive and let the players play.

Answer 9

Do you actually want to watch a man's sport or not? If you would like to watch a safe sport, try watching more golf, dude. Accidents happen all the time, give Tatum a break!!! It is getting to a point in the N.F.L. that, you are rooting for a hit period!!! The QB's don't even need to wear pads, unless of course, you are on the Raiders. They couldn't stop a pee wee league pass rush last year. Heh Heh Heh!!!

Answer 10

thats how football is played how would you make it 2 hand touch. darryl stingleys being paralyzed was a freak accident that almost never happens. the game isn't safe but the players know that when they step on the field.