I just don’t buy the player safety reasoning.

 

Head trauma/suicide/depression have become huge talking points. This is simply the NCAA and NFL’s way of appeasing those who don’t understand the sport.

 

If we’re claiming player safety, let’s have a targeting review team in a booth that reviews every tackle during the game.

 

Just go back to unnecessary roughness on a hit that was made with the intention of causing injury...

This rule is terrible. The worst rule in football on any level. The thing that makes it so bad is the ejection of a player on the first offense in a game. If you want to charge a 15 yard penalty the first time, then eject on the second offense in a game it would be slightly more tolerable.

 

Agree this may be one solution to the rule. Agree it needs to be changed.

This is not about player safety. It is about having a plausible defense to brain injury lawsuits. There is too much money at stake and potential deep-pocket defendants.

 

The line will be, “We took severe measures to make a violent game safer. We undertook studies and implemented a plan to eliminate the cause of these injuries.”

Suddenly this week the word "Attack" is part of the explanation. There has to not only be contact but now also an "Attack."

 

I guess after all of the outcry early in the season, "Attack" gives them an out not to call a targeting penalty.

This rule is terrible. The worst rule in football on any level. The thing that makes it so bad is the ejection of a player on the first offense in a game. If you want to charge a 15 yard penalty the first time, then eject on the second offense in a game it would be slightly more tolerable.

 

After seeing the targeting call on the Wisconsin player who unloaded on the Michigan QB, I change my mind on my proposal. I think there should be the option to eject a player on the first targeting penalty. I like the idea the announcer in that game proposed. His idea is targeting should be like the old two level facemask penalty. Give the team a 15 yard penalty if the targeting was incidental. Eject the player from the game if the targeting is intentional.