Denzel Perryman received a two-game suspension from the NFL for repeatedly hitting opposing players in the head. The Houston Texans linebacker was flagged for his sixth helmet-to-helmet shot of his career, and the league office opted to suspend him for it. Perryman will miss the next two games, and former Texans defensive legend J.J. Watt is upset about the decision.
Watt lambasted the decision on Twitter, noting that, while Perryman has six such penalties in his career, he has also appeared in eight seasons and 102 games. Watt wanted to bring out that Perryman wasn’t always taking shots at guys. The league also decided to cut his suspension to only two games.
And, while we admire Watt, we must emphasize that the players’ health must be first. If Perryman missing a few games may help limit future head injuries, we’re all for it. Especially when you consider how horribly the NBA has handled their situations.
Draymond Green, renowned for punching both opponents and teammates, got into another altercation and was only punished for five games. A ludicrous amount for a man who has repeatedly demonstrated rage issues and a history of poor impulse control.
The NFL needs to do everything it can to limit the type of bad press and publicity that it has a history of attracting, and suspending a player with a known history of such tackles is a good thing. Now, should the NFL be more willing to drop the hammer on other players for even worse behavior?
Of course, we’re still surprised Deshaun Watson was ever allowed back in the NFL, or that very little was ever done to Ben Roethlisberger for the accusations made against him. But just because those players didn’t get the punishments that many believed they should’ve been, doesn’t mean that Perryman doesn’t deserve his.
He’s got two games, that’s it. Then he can come back and hopefully not put the Texans in any more situations where they’re without a key player or where they’re getting penalties for play that’s detrimental to the team.
We look forward to Perryman’s return, as he’s been a solid linebacker at times for the team, we’d just like to see the shots to unprotected players be reduced from every so often to never.
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