new thread
I was just watching the Steeler's game, and there was an interception by Palomalu. He took off with the ball and was tackled by his hair. There were three penalties on the play. More later, but for now back to the game.
Well, there was some discussion among the commentators on whether the tackle by the hair was one of the penalties. They clarified later that it was not and that, in fact, tackling by the hair is completely legal.
Which presumably heightens the demand for players to shave/buzz their heads?
Right, the penalty was for the guy that tackled him taunting Polamalu after the play ended.
Sorry I spelled his name wrong.
Oops! I also put the subject in for my name by accident. I guess you could figure that out....
"Though it is not why his hair has not been cut for four years. He just stopped cutting it and it kept growing. The NFL has said he can be tackled by his hair with penalty, and there are rumors that if it continues to grow, the league will step in for safety reasons."
Read more in the linked article.
The Steelers Mane Man
Yeah I love watching the guy run around with that HUGE mop following him lol
The penalty was not for grabbing the hair by the opposing player, it was for unsportsmanlike conduct. It is very ironic; if you grab the face mask, you get penalized 5 yards or 15 yards depending how flagrant the foul is which is determined by the official. This action (grabbing the face mask) could cause head, neck, or spine injuries. If you pull the hair, there is no foul. This could also cause the same injuries. Is the solution to force every player to cut their hair short? NO!!!! There have been college football players who have suffered spinal injuries who have had short hair (Adam Talafiero from Penn State for example). Does that mean that short hair causes spinal injuries? NO!!! Football is a contact sport. Head, neck, and spinal injuries will happen irregardless whether you have long hair or short hair. Either require players who have long hair to tuck the hair in the helmet or just let the players play football!!!!
There is an inherent problem here. It is legal to tackle by the upper jersey, shoulderpads, and upper body area. The fact that these locations are now covered by hair doesn't negate the availability to use these areas as the points of the tackle. If it would be illegal all you would need to do would be to find a running back with thick hair as long as Absalom's; it would basically then be illegal to tackle him anywhere but the ankles.
"And the San Francisco Longlox win the 2009 Super Bowl . . ."