Dave’s Football Blog

Here’s what you can’t tell by watching this clip:

Mathias Kiwanuka, the rookie defensive end that let go of Vince Young in this play, was flagged for a questionable roughing-the-passer penalty three weeks ago. After the game, he said he thought Young had already passed the ball, and he was scared that if he didn’t let go, he might get flagged again, giving the Titans an automatic first down.

Sure, Young got the first down, anyway. That’s not the point. The point is that Kiwanuka was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t. Even if he went through with the tackle, who’s to say he wouldn’t have gotten flagged for hitting Young in a way that caused his head to bounce off the turf?

The rules that the NFL uses to protect quarterbacks have gone too damn far. I saw at least two roughing-the-passer penalties called in last week’s games that should not have been penalties — Julius Peppers’ not-really-late hit on Jason Campbell, and Cullen Jenkins’ barely-touched-his-head hit on Matt Hasselbeck. Calls like this are the reason Kiwanuka held up, and I suspect he’s not the only one.

These are not Faberge eggs. These are grown men playing a rough, physical sport, and those men get hurt. If you’re so scared that your quarterback might get injured, find better offensive linemen. Or stockpile more decent quarterbacks. Or go back to the single wing. Here’s an idea: let’s just outlaw pass-rushing all together and let the quarterback stand back there for 10 seconds until he finds someone open, and if he doesn’t, the play’s dead. That should do wonders for this sport…

Enough is enough, NFL. Quit punishing defensive linemen for doing their jobs.

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