I have no problem with the NFL investigating to see if certain techniques in the game are safe or unsafe, especially after serious injuries. For example, I always thought leading with the crown of the helmet was stupidly dangerous long before the NFL banned it. Football is a dangerous enough sport as it is, before players start to use techniques that are designed to maximize harm. just watching the video my impression is that what caused the injury wasn’t the tackle technique per se, but that the tackler had landed on the leg of the runner, then as the tackle continued the injury happened because the leg was trapped and the body kept moving. Not too dissimilar to a lot of OL/DL injuries that happen when a body falls on a leg and then force from a different direction is applied. My thoughts. 1) the injury looked more like bad luck than a technique that is egregiously dangerous. 2) The only feasible way to outlaw such a tackle would be to outlaw tacklers from grabbing a runner’s hips or legs. I really doubt the NFL wants that outcome. I predict that nothing of significance will come of the review.
Back when football was played by REAL men with nothing more than a Fisher Price plastic helmet and shoulder pads the size of Schwarzenegger’s shoulders.
I remember looking forward to Steelers-Oilers games in the 70s. Those teams HATED each other and actively tried to kill each other. Some of the hits Lambert & Co. delivered would be classified as assault and battery today, let alone be penalized. The same went for NFC North games - just brutal.
Pretty sure nothing will come out of this.. that injury is unavoidable, and has everything to do with the plwcement of his foot more so than the actual tackle.. if it was a horsecollar, id say that should be a fine.. but it was not a horsecollar, it was a good tackle.. it sucks, because it happened in mid January which means his 2023 season is in jeopardy.. also sucks because who knows how he returns from such an injury… but theyre not enforcing any rules on a play like that lol what they need to focus on is fixing roughing the passer.. because theyre wiping out legitimate sacks into 15 yard penalties
In an interview, Jack Lambert said he went to tackle Earl Campbell once and felt like he hit a brick wall. Lambert was one of the hardest hitting, nastiest linebackers to ever play the game and for him to say that about hitting Campbell? If memory serves me right, Earl Campbell’s thighs were 34 inches. Hell, that USED to be my waist! God I miss the old days of football! This wussification of the game anymore is ruining football and the gladiatorial attitude of the players.
Earl Campbell was like a battering ram with multiple gears. He could make you miss, but it never seemed like he wanted to, lol.
We'll see. They've changed things based on dangerous practices in the past. Consider Roy Williams' horse collar tackles, where he pulled receivers back and was causing career-ending (in those days) knee injuries: And remember when the Earth shook after Tom Brady's knee popped, prompting a change in how low you could tackle a QB in the pocket? Curiously, they didn't care so much when Kimo Von Oelhoffen did the same thing to Carson Palmer. After Tom Terrific was knocked out for a season, the NFL moved swiftly to protect **him** I mean, QBs from similar hits. I wouldn't be surprised if they find a way to penalize that tackle. They'll probably go back over the past two seasons and see how frequently players were injured due to being brought down that way and if Pollard's injury was a one-off, they'll let it go.
Personally I think Cambpell was one of the best backs ever. Maybe it was from him running through Miami's defense so often.
I would agree. He was BIG, he was STRONG and he was surprisingly fast for a man his size. The closest the NFL has to an Earl Campbell today would be Derrick Henry. The age of great running backs has sadly been reduced to a footnote on the league’s roster of players.
I almost forgot about Henry; I was going to say Eddie George was the last guy in that Campbell mold, although maybe not as fast. Some of those George/Ray Lewis collisions were reminiscent of the 70s style of play.
Earl was 5'11 232. Henry 6'3 247. Not sure what speed they ran at though. 5'11 232 that is some powerful force there.
I have nightmares of that Monday Night game when he outran our DBs. Next to the Jests' comeback, it was the most heartbreaking MNF moment in my fandom.