Playoffs - Cleveland at Kansas City

[Chiefer]

25 minutes ago, Jakuvious said:

Basically, it's really strict in the book, but not really called so on the field. There were 3 or 4 you could've called on Hunt in that game. There were also probably another dozen you could've called on miscellaneous other players, offense and defense, on each team. The reality is, they don't call it the way the rule is written. They call it when it looks bad. Hard hits, defenseless players, guys looking woozy or staying down after, etc. Because the rule is incredibly straightforward:

Like, literally any contact where a player lowers their head and initiates with the helmet is illegal. They don't call it that way, though. And they never will. I wasn't surprised the hit on Dan wasn't called, between where they were in the field, the one ref near it having to watch the pylon, and the fact that it didn't really look egregious in real time. I was more surprised they called it out on the replay, given how little they call attention to every other time it goes uncalled.

 

tl;dr: the Sorensen hit was definitely illegal. It's also the kind the NFL has tried to ignore all year.

Like I was saying they usually only call it for a defenseless receiver. Like even when it’s incidental or their wasn’t even a real helmet hit on replay, if it’s a big enough “hit” they’ll call it.

There has been a point of emphasis at least when I watch games that once somebody has become a runner, be it a RB, WR or QB, then leading with a helmet doesn’t usually get called. Unless it’s especially egregious or malicious. Sorensens was more incidental and in real time didn’t look like a helmet to helmet.

A ref would have had to of been standing in the back of the end zone to see it.