In Saturday’s preseason game between the Denver Broncos and the Buffalo Bills, Broncos rookie safety Rahim Moore delivered a startling hit to Bills wide receiver Donald Jones.
A play which has warranted mixed opinions. Was it a clean hit or did Moore deserve an ejection?
Here’s the video:
http://youtu.be/1A3-LfFzHxM
Moore was flagged for a personal foul on the hit that fired up both teams.
“I was being a football player,” Moore said after the game. “I couldn’t really get to the ball to pick it off, which is what I really wanted to do. But my intention was just to hit him. Our coaches want us to be physical, so I’m going to do what I do.”
The Bills didn’t agree — especially fellow Buffalo receiver Stevie Johnson who had a few words for Moore after the play.
Teammate Brian Dawkins’ slapped Moore’s shoulder pads in commendation just before Bills Johnson shoved Moore in disgust.
Broncos linebacker D.J. Williams gave Moore a helmet-to-helmet tap, then jawed with Johnson, who was held back by Buffalo teammate David Nelson.
“At the end of the day, I mean no harm to nobody. I don’t want to hurt anybody,” Moore said. “I prayed for the dude afterward. Because I really didn’t know what was going on. People were tapping my head. People were hitting me. I wasn’t sure what was going on.”
After watching the video, I believe the hit was clean, as I feel Moore was leading with shoulder.
While Jones is definitely in a defenseless position when Moore delivers the hit, he doesn’t lead with his helmet. Moore sends his shoulder into Jones before there is helmet-to-helmet contact. Jones then falls to the ground and his head hits the ground.
This is a good example of the disconnect with pro football right now. The process the NFL is trying to carry out when it comes to hard hits is fundamentally flawed. Whether the league likes it or not, the speed of the game requires players to make major hits, and in some cases, players collide unintentionally in ways that leave one or more players laid out.