[moklerman]

Lorenzo Carter of Georgia just got ejected for lowering the crown of his helmet into the QB's chin. He was flagged and then the review officials confirmed that he should be tossed for "targeting".

Could this rule work in the NFL? Seems hard to imagine it ever making it to the pro level but I never thought I'd see a 2 point conversion or longer PAT either. And, considering how much they protect QB's as it is, maybe this is a much better deterrent than just a 15 yard penalty.

[TSFH Fan]

To me, I just don't like anything that gives more power/authority to the refs on the field -- just another penalty to be wrongfully called against the Rams.

Two things:
(1) I believe it's a 2 half DQ in college -- the player is DQ'd for the half that the penalty occurred plus the next half of football, whether in the same game or the next game. I can't imagine this penalty being called in the NFL playoffs -- I mean, the consequences could be huge and it really alter multiple games. Defensive holding isn't called in the SB, this would be another penalty that wouldn't be called imo.

(2) In the NFL it's not just a 15 yard penalty, it's 15 yards plus a happy FedEx Envelope from the league office at your locker the next day telling you that your salary is being docked for player safety violations. If they want to increase the deterrent, they can increase the fine amount, right?

The ejection isn't just penalizing the player, it's penalizing the team and the fans too. While that may fly in college, I'm just not for it where the stakes are bigger in the NFL. But, really, your question is "could" it work and the answer is yes, just like calling holding on defense in the SB could work.

[majik]

Maybe after a video review by league officials the following day, the player should be docked his pro-rated salary for the game for violating player safety rules. NFLPA should be in favor of protecting its members. The pro-rated salary would include the salary for the entire contract including signing and roster bonus money.

[Elvis]

I love to talk about how little penalties matter in the NFL, how highly penalized teams routinely go to the playoffs and win Superbowls but just now it occurs to me, i wonder if that bothers the NFL?

Right now penalties appear to be costly game killers and that's certainly the conventional wisdom but when you look at which teams are winning games, going to the playoffs and winning the Superbowl, penalties don't seem to be a factor.

Will the NFL do something about this? Will they devise a scheme that actually turns winning teams into losing teams or is the appearance enough for them?