Cowboys' Heath not fined for hit on Seahawks' Lockette

Makes no sense.

NEW YORK (AP) — Dallas Cowboys safety Jeff Heath will not be fined by the NFL for his hit on Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Ricardo Lockette, who needed surgery to stabilize ligaments in his neck.

Lockette was injured last Sunday in Seattle's 13-12 win over Dallas during a punt return when he was hit by Heath and knocked out. He laid motionless for several minutes and was eventually strapped to a backboard and taken off the field.

Heath was penalized for an illegal blindside block on the play, but the league ruled Friday that it didn't warrant an additional fine.

Seattle defensive end Michael Bennett was fined $20,000 for his late hit on Dallas quarterback Matt Cassel.

Cincinnati safety George Iloka was docked $23,152 for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Pittsburgh tight end Heath Miller.

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AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

That is the influence of anti-Seahawks crusader/XL fabulist Mike Pereira.

Bennett's fine is crap though.

HawkGA":2a9k21so said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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Disagree 100%. It was high when he had all day to go for the numbers. Yet another crap call by the NFL.

This is BS, Tate was fined and penalized. Kam was penalized and appealed his fine. Heath hit Lockette too high and should be fined to remind him and others to exercise more care, but he isn't fined. Wow.

Once again the penalty disparity argument will be raised.

Lockett ducked his head a bit so it ended up worse than it would have. But as to the other examples of things that were fined that shouldn't have been, I won't argue.

..but on a positive note it was ruled a catch.

HawkGA":1cfm8jiq said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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I still insist that they planned and likely even practiced the setup of Lockette on that play (the initial defender intentionally gave him inside leverage and then rode him basically right into Heath before he backed off) - but I don't believe that they intended to injure him - just to send a message. In that regard....I think it was a little dirty....not sure if it really warranted a penalty or a fine though.

HawkGA":1vhfkv5q said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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You do realize that the VP of officiating Dean Blandino said that yes the block was illegal? The NFL decided for whatever reason not to fine him.

If you were to sit here and watch footage of all punts that happened on Sunday, you would see this exact hit dozens of times. I'm 90% certain the neck damage and concussion are from hitting the ground, not the hit itself. There was nothing remotely close to illegal about the hit.

HawkGA":2yxny8qr said:

Lockett ducked his head a bit so it ended up worse than it would have. But as to the other examples of things that were fined that shouldn't have been, I won't argue.

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:13: I agree. Had he not put his head down he would have been hit right in the chest.. Unfortunate, yes. Dirty, no.

Chrome_Seahawk":3ryqezo1 said:

HawkGA":3ryqezo1 said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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I still insist that they planned and likely even practiced the setup of Lockette on that play (the initial defender intentionally gave him inside leverage and then rode him basically right into Heath before he backed off) - but I don't believe that they intended to injure him - just to send a message. In that regard....I think it was a little dirty....not sure if it really warranted a penalty or a fine though.

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Wow. Hadn't heard that before, or even thought about it. If that's true, then it changes everything.

I had just heard an interview with Ricardo the other day where when asked "Who's the biggest trash talker you've faced", he said, "probably me." He said that he's always trying to get a mental edge by going after guys verbally, trying to get them out of their game. So yeah, that's the kind of guy that might get set up.

Interesting.

Bigbadhawk":3annb9wi said:

HawkGA":3annb9wi said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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You do realize that the VP of officiating Dean Blandino said that yes the block was illegal? The NFL decided for whatever reason not to fine him.

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Jerruh must have promised more rides on his party bus for Deano!

From the Fort Worth newspaper:

By Charean Williams
Fort Worth Star-Telegram

IRVING, Texas _ The NFL confirmed Friday that it did not fine Jeff Heath for his blindside block on Ricardo Lockette that left the Seahawks receiver with a season-ending neck injury that required surgery. However, on his weekly officiating video, Dean Blandino, the NFL's vice president of officiating, said the hit was illegal.
"As part of the discipline process, when it's reviewed during the week, you can consider mitigating factors _ mitigating factors such as the receiver's head level changing, all those types of things are considered in the potential fine process," Blandino said. "On the field, the rule is strict liability of the player delivering the block."
The minimum for a first offense blindside block is $23,152. Heath, who has never been fined, makes $34,411 per week.
During a Cowboys punt return late in the second quarter Sunday, the Cowboys safety hit Lockette with a vicious block. Heath drew a 15-yard penalty for a blindside block.
"There's really two factors in determining whether this is a foul," Blandino said. "The first factor is the direction the blocker is going, so if the blocker is moving toward his own goal line or parallel to his own goal line, that's the first part. Then, the second part is the contact. So if there is forcible contact to the head or neck area, then it's a blindside block."
Blandino adds that Heath was moving parallel to his own goal line and made contact with Lockette's head and neck area.
"In order to make this block legally, the blocker would have to be going toward his own end zone, away from his own goal line and not parallel to his own goal line," Blandino said. "That would be legal if he's heading in that direction. ...It is a blindside block by rule. Their shoulders might end up square at the point of contact, or that the player being blocked can see the blocker, does not factor into the decision whether it's a foul. The fact that 83 (Lockette) may duck his head to brace for the contact does not factor into the official's decision as to whether this is a foul. It's basically strict liability on the player initiating contact, the player delivering the block. He must avoid contact, forcible contact to the head or neck area, regardless of the body level or head level changing of the player being blocked. This is no different than a defensive player attempting to hit a receiver who's in a defensive posture. If a defenseless player's posture changes, the onus is still on the defender to avoid that forcible contact to the head and neck area. So that's how the rule is administered. So this is a blindside block."

Curious how many other times blind side hits don't draw fines? While I'm of the opinion it shouldn't have been a penalty, at the point the league is saying it is, they need to be consistent. That said, sounds like a fine would eat up almost his entire game check.

Sign37now":2ul53t5h said:

HawkGA":2ul53t5h said:

Lockett ducked his head a bit so it ended up worse than it would have. But as to the other examples of things that were fined that shouldn't have been, I won't argue.

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:13: I agree. Had he not put his head down he would have been hit right in the chest.. Unfortunate, yes. Dirty, no.

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That's how I saw it too. It's unfortunate that Lockette got hurt, but I don't think Heath did anything wrong intentionally.

HawkGA":1rlmncqj said:

It wasn't a dirty hit. Really shouldn't have even drawn a penalty.

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I don't think it was dirty but it definitely deserved a fine given the same exact type of hits have drawn fines for years now.

HawkFan72":j6iinbgt said:

Sign37now":j6iinbgt said:

HawkGA":j6iinbgt said:

Lockett ducked his head a bit so it ended up worse than it would have. But as to the other examples of things that were fined that shouldn't have been, I won't argue.

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:13: I agree. Had he not put his head down he would have been hit right in the chest.. Unfortunate, yes. Dirty, no.

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That's how I saw it too. It's unfortunate that Lockette got hurt, but I don't think Heath did anything wrong intentionally.

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Neither did Golden Tate on Sean Lee which was a "cleaner hit" but Jerruh cried to the league loud and long enough he got Tate a fine.

Clearly the issue was fining a person 2/3's of his game salary