Redskins' rookie Niles Paul fined $20,000 for hit on punt return

Cheap shot. Gunner has all time in world to make sure he levels guy without going to helmet. May be steep for how much he's making, but a fine is needed. Fines should be percentage of salary based.

 

That's what you get for not calling a fair catch

 

I think helmet to helmet is called too often - like if a receiver starts bending down I don't see how it's the defenders fault that the offensive players helmet is in a atypical spot.

But this is clearly not that. The announcers said it perfectly - exactly the type of hit he rule was made for.

 

Dude put the crown of his helmet right into the receivers' facemask. Absolutely justified punishment.

 

Why is there a thread dedicated to this? These types of fines happen every week.

 

Because the OP likes to start a thread for every thought that pops into his head?

 

Good hit IMO. I like it. They don't call fair catch? That's a personal challenge in my head. MAKE them call a fair catch the next time. Ha. What did you want him to do kiss the guy on the forehead?

 

Video showed 2 times.

 

Not sure if serious. So if the guy had ended up injuring his spine it would be ok because he didnt call for a fair catch? That's the exact kind of hit that can end a players career.

 

Rookie mistake.

 

not sure if it's worth a fine, but certainly a penalty. It looked like he tried to get the shoulder in there but he failed to do so

 

I agree that should be a penalty and a fine, but maybe I would do a 5k-10k fine.

He had enough time to aim for the chest, and he could tackle with his shoulder to the chest, and that way, the defensive could still have the fumble.

 

Looked like a good hit to me. You can see he turns his head and body to lead with the shoulder. He was too close to the punt returner to lower his body and go for returners body. Paul's twirling body after the glancing blow is more evidence that he was turning to lead with the shoulder. It was an incidental helmet-to-helmet because of the punt returner's squat and Paul's momentum, which I never agree is a true helmet-to-helmet hit.

To me, he timed it just right. Punt returner needs to call a fair catch.

 

The NFL is suffering from poor tackling. It's sad, but nobody form tackles anymore. Everyone tries to go for a big hit to jar the ball loose. It's high risk/high reward/ high fine.

I think helmet to helmet is highly subjective, but some instances are blatant. This, is a blatant situation. The NFL is a privilege to play in. You make a lot of money to play a game. 20K is not too bad, considering it is likely maybe 1/20th of the guy's salary. If I made an error as bad as that at my job, I would probably be fired. Some situations (i.e. the receivers duck as they get hit) are unavoidable, need to be defined by the league, and need to be reviewed.

On the other hand, I am sick of the defenseless receiver crap. The NFL is a collision sport. People are going to get hurt. Players go into this league knowing that they can end up hurt or disabled after (or before) their careers are over. It is ridiculous to protect quarterbacks and receivers in some of the ways the NFL has. Some of the defenseless receiver calls I've seen this year have been outlandish. I remember two in Texans games, and one in a 49ers game that I saw this year, that had at least a moderate effect on the game.

I've been meaning to start a thread on this. The NFL has almost become boring, in a way. There are way too many rules to protect offenses, and offenses are putting up prolific numbers. This has all been done, in my opinion, to appease and interest casual fans. When you're making billions upon billions of dollars in revenue, you should quit looking for mass appeal, and stay true to yourself.

What makes the NFL so appealing, is that it encompasses a lot of basic human emotions. It's a game of strategy that can be won by brute force and violence (which is becoming less and less allowable by the league), or by sheer genius and finesse. The days of tough, intimidating NFL defenses have seemingly died with Roger Goodell, and that is a shame.


(Sorry to go off on a tangent)