You can touch them but if you lay someone out like that when he's twirling around in the air you're going to get flagged every time.
The key is that Pollard lined him up and didn't stop after the ball was away from the receiver and he was just hanging in the air. Those kinds of plays are just not legal any more. The real point is that so many defenders only know how to lay the big hit, and have no clue how to tackle. Everyone who got into the NFL because of all of that gratuitous violence in the official NFL videos is not going to be happy, because they're legislating that out of the game.
Matthews was clearly in the end zone on first down, but he scores on third down anyway. SD about to go up 31-7, and with the current Arizona score, it looks like the Giants will be eliminated from the playoffs.
Ehh looking at the gif below, I don't see this hit being deserving still. Yeah looking below I still don't see it matching the rules. It's what the NFL wants to stop, but this is too bang/bang to me and it was nothing at the helmet or leading with a helmet Gif of hit: http://cjzero.com/gifs/PollardShoulderHitDecker.gif (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, regardless of whether the defensive player also uses his arms to tackle the defenseless player by encircling or grasping him; and (2) Lowering the head and making forcible contact with the top/crown or forehead/”hairline” parts of the helmet against any part of the defenseless player’s body. (j) if a player illegally launches into a defenseless opponent. It is an illegal launch if a player (1) leaves both feet prior to contact to spring forward and upward into his opponent, and (2) uses any part of his helmet (including the top/crown and forehead/”hairline” parts) to initiate forcible contact against any part of his opponent’s body. from page 74 http://www.nfl.com/static/content/public/image/rulebook/pdfs/15_Rule12_Player_Conduct.pdf For the b part, the hit doesn't match to me since it was shoulder to shoulder and he didn't use a helmet. For the part J, I see number 1 but it says "and" and I don't use the helmet again. Unless the and mean either or? I just don't see it matching those rules, but more matching the NFL standards of what it wants the rule to encompass Oh well, agree to disagree. I think it doesn't match and the only thing is launching part.
Chris Johnson fumble for TEN while trying to run backwards to create a play. von miller forced it and denver recovers. Up 9 in FG range for Denver now
Seattle shoulda let them scored. Now it looks like they will get the ball with about 30 seconds left down 2.
