steelersbabex25
12-01-2010, 05:57 PM
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gVZ_D1quJ5FYD2xt7ReD3w7cAG3w?docId=CNG.b7f46 55178d3435c9a54db2e30817efb.801
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania — Saying the National Football League does not truly care about players or their safety, Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Hines Ward blasted the league over a rules crackdown.
The 34-year-old Seoul-born son of a Korean mother has played in the NFL since the Steelers selected him in the 1998 NFL Draft and says the league is only making a safety push to help obtain an 18-game season in labor talks.
"The league doesn't care about us anyway," Ward said. "They don't care about the safety of the game. If the league was so concerned about the safety, why are you adding two more games on?
"You talk about you don't want players to drink ... and all you see is beer commercials. You don't want us to gamble, but then there are (NFL-backed lottery tickets)."
NFL officials have talked about expanding the regular season from 16 to 18 games per club in order to boost television and other revenue, although the idea must be approved in labor talks.
Negotiations are under way to replace the current deal, which expires next year after the Super Bowl.
Ward says there is great confusion among NFL players about what hits are legal and which are not since the NFL crackdown on dangerous hits, with Steelers linebacker James Harrison having been fined 125,000 dollars for four hits this season.
"We don't know what the league wants," Ward said. "If a quarterback gets hit within the play, you can't hit him in the helmet, you can't hit him in the knees. Where can you hit a quarterback? I keep seeing our quarterback getting hit all the time."
Ward, who helped the Steelers win NFL titles in 2006 and 2009 and was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl 40 in 2006, said he thinks a team will lose a game because an official makes a mistaken call for fear of being disciplined by the NFL for not following the new safety crackdown.
"Somebody is going to lose a game because of it," Ward said. "It's going to be a huge play in a playoff game. Somebody's going to hit a quarterback or do something and the referee is going to be too scared to call it. So he's going to call it anyway so he can save his tail."
Harrison was fined on Tuesday for a hit that he said was the same as one that had not been punished earlier in the season.
The Steelers have seen Harrison fined frequently while quarterback Ben Roethlisberger appeared to have his right leg twisted after being tackled by Buffalo's Arthur Moats, who was not penalized even though "Big Ben" is in a walking boot to protect a sprained foot as a result of the play.
Ward warned that the Steelers were not changing how they played no matter what calls were made.
"We're going to keep playing the way we always have been playing," Ward said. "If they fine us, they fine us. It's football. It's always going to be a physical ball game."
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs said the NFL looks more harshly at quarterback hits upon New England's Tom Brady or Peyton Manning of Indianapolis compared to those upon other signal callers.
"The league has their favorites, one being in Indy and one being with that team up north," Suggs said. "Besides those two, everybody is fair game.
"Carson Palmer (of Cincinnati) got his knee hurt in 2005, but there was no rule made. Then Tom Brady got hit in the knee and all of a sudden there is rule and possible suspensions, excessive fines. It's just getting ridiculous."
Roethlisberger did not disagree with Suggs.
"He seems to know some things about the game of football," Roethlisberger said.
Along with this, Terrell Suggs also came out and said he felt that James Harrison was being targeted.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/early-lead/2010/12/james_harrison_hines_ward_terr.html
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison said there's nothing wrong with the way he plays football, in spite of the $125,000 in fines he has drawn this season from the NFL.
"I am not playing dirty. I am not doing anything outside the lines," Harrison said. I am sure if you ask 10 guys in the league, I am sure eight or nine of them are going to say that he's not a dirty player and he's a hard player and that's he's just getting a bad rep right now."
His teammate, Hines Ward, came to his defense, as did Troy Polamalu earlier. Ward said that it's "almost like you're guilty until proven innocent."
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs, said he thinks Harrison is targeted. "Your guy over there, 92, I think he is red-flagged. The referees are kind of looking for him. Even if he breathes on a quarterback wrong, he might get a flag."
Harrison who has conferred about the NFL's crackdown on hits with Commissioner Roger Goodell, has been fined four times this season -- most recently $25,000 for a hit on Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick -- for a total of $125,000.
All of them hit the nail on the head IMO. I agree with Ward in that the NFL doesn't care about the player safety, they care about making money and making a statement. Unfortunately, I this statement isn't the right one to make, and I don't know what it's going to take for them to realize that. Terrell Suggs even said that he things that Harrison is being fined unfairly. AN OPPONENT. Come on, an opponent is coming out and saying that he thinks they're always looking at Harrison. There's you're evidence right there.
"It's almost like you're innocent until proven guilty." Thats 100% right. It's like a backwards law system. It's :willybs:
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania — Saying the National Football League does not truly care about players or their safety, Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Hines Ward blasted the league over a rules crackdown.
The 34-year-old Seoul-born son of a Korean mother has played in the NFL since the Steelers selected him in the 1998 NFL Draft and says the league is only making a safety push to help obtain an 18-game season in labor talks.
"The league doesn't care about us anyway," Ward said. "They don't care about the safety of the game. If the league was so concerned about the safety, why are you adding two more games on?
"You talk about you don't want players to drink ... and all you see is beer commercials. You don't want us to gamble, but then there are (NFL-backed lottery tickets)."
NFL officials have talked about expanding the regular season from 16 to 18 games per club in order to boost television and other revenue, although the idea must be approved in labor talks.
Negotiations are under way to replace the current deal, which expires next year after the Super Bowl.
Ward says there is great confusion among NFL players about what hits are legal and which are not since the NFL crackdown on dangerous hits, with Steelers linebacker James Harrison having been fined 125,000 dollars for four hits this season.
"We don't know what the league wants," Ward said. "If a quarterback gets hit within the play, you can't hit him in the helmet, you can't hit him in the knees. Where can you hit a quarterback? I keep seeing our quarterback getting hit all the time."
Ward, who helped the Steelers win NFL titles in 2006 and 2009 and was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl 40 in 2006, said he thinks a team will lose a game because an official makes a mistaken call for fear of being disciplined by the NFL for not following the new safety crackdown.
"Somebody is going to lose a game because of it," Ward said. "It's going to be a huge play in a playoff game. Somebody's going to hit a quarterback or do something and the referee is going to be too scared to call it. So he's going to call it anyway so he can save his tail."
Harrison was fined on Tuesday for a hit that he said was the same as one that had not been punished earlier in the season.
The Steelers have seen Harrison fined frequently while quarterback Ben Roethlisberger appeared to have his right leg twisted after being tackled by Buffalo's Arthur Moats, who was not penalized even though "Big Ben" is in a walking boot to protect a sprained foot as a result of the play.
Ward warned that the Steelers were not changing how they played no matter what calls were made.
"We're going to keep playing the way we always have been playing," Ward said. "If they fine us, they fine us. It's football. It's always going to be a physical ball game."
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs said the NFL looks more harshly at quarterback hits upon New England's Tom Brady or Peyton Manning of Indianapolis compared to those upon other signal callers.
"The league has their favorites, one being in Indy and one being with that team up north," Suggs said. "Besides those two, everybody is fair game.
"Carson Palmer (of Cincinnati) got his knee hurt in 2005, but there was no rule made. Then Tom Brady got hit in the knee and all of a sudden there is rule and possible suspensions, excessive fines. It's just getting ridiculous."
Roethlisberger did not disagree with Suggs.
"He seems to know some things about the game of football," Roethlisberger said.
Along with this, Terrell Suggs also came out and said he felt that James Harrison was being targeted.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/early-lead/2010/12/james_harrison_hines_ward_terr.html
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison said there's nothing wrong with the way he plays football, in spite of the $125,000 in fines he has drawn this season from the NFL.
"I am not playing dirty. I am not doing anything outside the lines," Harrison said. I am sure if you ask 10 guys in the league, I am sure eight or nine of them are going to say that he's not a dirty player and he's a hard player and that's he's just getting a bad rep right now."
His teammate, Hines Ward, came to his defense, as did Troy Polamalu earlier. Ward said that it's "almost like you're guilty until proven innocent."
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs, said he thinks Harrison is targeted. "Your guy over there, 92, I think he is red-flagged. The referees are kind of looking for him. Even if he breathes on a quarterback wrong, he might get a flag."
Harrison who has conferred about the NFL's crackdown on hits with Commissioner Roger Goodell, has been fined four times this season -- most recently $25,000 for a hit on Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick -- for a total of $125,000.
All of them hit the nail on the head IMO. I agree with Ward in that the NFL doesn't care about the player safety, they care about making money and making a statement. Unfortunately, I this statement isn't the right one to make, and I don't know what it's going to take for them to realize that. Terrell Suggs even said that he things that Harrison is being fined unfairly. AN OPPONENT. Come on, an opponent is coming out and saying that he thinks they're always looking at Harrison. There's you're evidence right there.
"It's almost like you're innocent until proven guilty." Thats 100% right. It's like a backwards law system. It's :willybs: