The trouble with any officiating mandate is that the men in the black and white stripes will always take it to the extreme.
If they’re not careful with the new targeting rules and renewed emphasis on player safety, they’re going to make football unwatchable, and take home cooking to a place even Paula Deen wouldn’t think of.
Player safety absolutely is important. But so are the laws of physics. A 6-4, 314 lb. man can’t stop himself in midair. Bodies in motion have inertia and momentum. In today’s Virginia game Ricky Havili-Heimuli was flagged for a late-hit penalty on a play where he did everything possible to avoid contact, had his hands in the air and tried to veer around the quarterback. He barely touched David Watford, and in no way endangered his safety.
Earlier in the game De’Anthony Thomas was flagged for taunting after an opponent kneed his head into the turf and shoved him in the face. Hard to imagine how that situation wouldn’t be a little chippy. The officials should have ignored the crosstalk.
On sideline plays sometimes the momentum of players takes them out of bounds. It’s doesn’t mean that every block or tackle at the sidelines is a late hit out of bounds.
The Ducks had too many penalties on Saturday, and they’ll work to correct them. But at the same time, too many flags were thrown. Every effort must be made to keep the game safer. But it’s foolish for officials to act as though their job is to legislate contact out of the game.
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