Ill argue against the call. Rafael leads with his shoulder and the crown of Harvin's helmet hits him in the ear hole. They are essentially running at 90 degree angles to each other and Rafael get's there first and Harvin's head initiates the contact the helmet contact.

Is the league claiming that Rafael swung his head to initiate contact? Some kind of head butt ninja move? Or is the league claiming defenders must get their heads out of the way of oncoming offensive players heads?

2 ...

Report Post

Posted by detmut

Jesuit 81 Metairie

Member since Sep 2011

2304 posts

Posted on 1/17/14 at 5:46 pm to Turbeauxdog

(b) Prohibited contact against a player who is in a defenseless posture is:

(1) Forcibly hitting the defenseless player’s head or neck area with the helmet, facemask, forearm, or shoulder, even if the initial contact of the defender’s helmet or facemask is lower than the passer’s neck, and regardless of whether the defensive player also uses his arms to tackle the defenseless player by encircling or grasping him;

Note 2: A player who initiates contact against a defenseless opponent is responsible for avoiding an illegal act. This includes illegal contact that may occur during the process of attempting to dislodge the ball from an opponent. A standard of strict liability applies for any contact against a defenseless opponent, even if the opponent is an airborne player who is returning to the ground or whose body position is otherwise in motion, and irrespective of any acts by the defenseless opponent, such as ducking his head or curling up his body in anticipation of contact.

https://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/image/rulebook/pdfs/2013%20-%20Rule%20Book.pdf

This post was edited on 1/17/14 at 5:47 pm

2 ...

Report Post

Posted by goatmilker

Castle Anthrax

Member since Feb 2009

64685 posts

Posted on 1/17/14 at 10:08 pm to Turbeauxdog