Dallas Cowboys Jason Witten Wants Consistency On Illegal Hit Calls
By Mike Dyce
Feb. 2, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA: Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten (right) walks the red carpet with wife Michelle Witten prior to the Super Bowl XLVII NFL Honors award show at Mahalia Jackson Theater. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The NFL is considering changing rules again in the name of player safety. They want to eliminate peel back blocks and prevent runners from lowering their head when making contact with a defender. But the NFL has come into question about the consistency in which these calls are made or aren’t made.
Jason Witten hopes that the NFL focuses on consistency going forward.
“As you go, you do mess with the integrity of the game that we all love,” Jason Witten said on WNST in Baltimore, via Sports Radio Interviews. “But at the same time, there are measures that have to be taken to protect the game and protect the players. So I think that’s part of the territory we kind of learn as we go here. But I think the consistency that we can have within those hits, both offensively and defensively moving forward, are critical because they can determine the outcome of the game. So I really think, personally, that has to get streamlined into what’s legal and what’s not legal.”
Jason Witten is taking a more middle of the road approach and trying to play devil’s advocate.
Many players including Marshall Faulk and Eric Dickerson have come out against the rule changes. Faulk has a simple solution, just remove the helmets.
“I think it’s a bad rule,” Dickerson told Mike Freeman of CBS. “Mostly because it’s a natural reaction. You’ll never be able to police it. Running backs have to be able to protect themselves and doing that is protecting yourself.”
“The league is trying to take the violence out of the NFL,” Dickerson said. “That will never happen. What’s next, take the stiff arm away?”