Does The NFL Hate The Steelers?
Does the NFL hate the Pittsburgh Steelers? Craig from over at interesting piece about the NFL’s new rule changes about player safety and what they might mean for hard-hitting, physical teams like the Steelers.
I weighed in on the article over at NPC but you should check out the article for yourselves. I know Craig worked hard on the piece and he’d love to hear feedback from other NFL fans.
Here is a sampl/link:
The NFL’s hatred has been brooding for a long time, waiting until the right moment, the right turning point in the game itself so that it can remove the vail masking that hatred. The 2009 season began the huge push for player ‘safety.’ The league changed rules for hitting defenseless players – receivers, quarterbacks and even blockers. This became the first shot heard ’round the world against the war on the Steelers. Targeting mainly Hines Ward, the league outlawed hitting defenseless players who were either catching the ball or making a play on the ball. Next league officials (outside of the zebras) began dishing out fines to players for dangerous and ‘illegal’ hits. Now, the moment became ripe for the legue to take aim at one of the hardest hitting teams in the NFL – the Steelers. And boy, did they ever take advantage. James Harrison became the poster child for the ever subjectively defined ‘illegal’ hit. When all was said and done, Harrison accumulated $100,000 in fines. Harrison threatened to retire, and I’m sure the league was drooling over the prospect of that happening.