NFL considering ejecting players for roughing the passer: Report
Jack Birle
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The NFL is currently discussing whether to change the penalty for roughing the passer and hitting a defenseless player to an ejection.
Currently, the punishment for either of the infractions is a 15-yard penalty and first down for the opposing team, but according to a report from the Associated Press, the league was actively debating a change at an owners meeting Wednesday.
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Speaking with the outlet, NFL executive Troy Vincent said the penalties could be added as reviewable plays in addition to an increased punishment but that changes would have to be measured and would likely come during the league’s off-season.
“It’s a personal foul and there’s a ton of fouls in that category,” Vincent said to the outlet. “Where does it end? Again, the most impactful play in football is pass interference. Now we start including the personal foul. But that’s why we’ll discuss it. I’ll be looking forward to this discussion.”
The NFL made pass interference a reviewable penalty in 2019, but the change was reversed after one season.
Hits on defenseless players have become a more discussed topic as concussions and long-term injuries to players continue to hurt the league’s reputation.
Earlier this season, the league’s concussion protocol came under fire when Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa took two big hits in back-to-back games, with the second hit leaving his fingers locked up in a way an analyst said would as part of a “neurological response to head trauma.”
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The doctor who had cleared Tagovailoa to play in the second game was reportedly fired from his position. The backlash included former NFL player Rodney Harrison pleading for players not to play through a concussion.
“I don’t want [today’s athletes] to feel like me and so many other former players that had to deal with concussions, whether it’s depression, anxiety, paranoia, broken relationships, not being able to communicate with your spouse, things like that. [Chronic traumatic encephalopathy] takes you to a dark place, and I want these players to know it’s not worth it,” Harrison said