...And Florio's PFT runs a story about Clowney calling Eagles fans the worst in the world:
https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... the-world/
I also found this: profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/08/04/nfl-rules-will-now-treat-head-first-dives-like-feet-first-slides/
“A quarterback does not have to slide feet first to be considered to be giving himself up,” the league’s online rules say. “Regardless whether the slide is feet first or head first, as long as he gives himself up, he should receive the protections afforded to him as a player in a defenseless posture.”
Since 2018, that's been the rule: Even if going head first, once the QB has given himself up, he is not supposed to be hit. Then again, when defenders are already mid-leap, they don't get penalized under the slide rule.
That's what I think happened here initially with the no-call--it could've gone either way. And after that, the refs didn't have the PR issue of no-calling it with an unconscious QB lying on the field. The no-call became vastly more important when Wentz was ruled out several plays later after the decision had been made. That's why the NFL is reviewing Clowney for fines, because if that same hit had ended in with Wentz being unconscious on the field, it gets called if there's any gray area.
Clowney easily could have gotten a penalty, but it isn't his fault he didn't. It is totally his fault that he baited Philadelphia fans through the Inquirer of all people. They'd just lost their QB, they'd just lost their playoffs, and he's there telling the world Philly fans are the worst, booing him when he was a "friendly guy." Talk about inflaming the situation.