Fascinating Inside Look at Merton Hanks not Fining Clark for a Hit a Couple Weeks Ago

[Craic]

Here's an intersting read written by someone who was sitting in the room with Merton Hanks as he was deciding whether to fine Ryan Clark from the Eagles game.

FOLLOWING WEEK 5 of the NFL season, Merton Hanks sat in his office on the fifth floor of the league's Park Avenue headquarters and watched 39 "potential violations" on the monitor on his wall. In this age of bounties and brain shadows, Hanks, the league's largely invisible vice president of football operations, determines whether players should be fined for their on-field behavior and how much. He is football's equivalent of a plane crash investigator, the quiet expert in wreckage, assigned the impossible task of preventing the inevitable. There will always be gravity; planes will always fall out of the sky.


That Sunday, Steelers free safety Ryan Clark had played his usual role of missile. Eagles tight end Brent Celek was his target. Hanks leans closer to his monitor; he has turned down the sound, because he doesn't care what Troy Aikman, for instance, thinks of the hit. He is watching in a vacuum

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/85...-espn-magazine

[bayz101]

It's funny. Not once does the article mention that the hit wasn't even helmet-to-helmet.

[fansince'76]

It's funny. Not once does the article mention that the hit wasn't even helmet-to-helmet.

That's not part of the "ZOMFG! DA STEALERS R ALL DURTY!" agenda.

[steeldawg]

I think its interesting goodell really has nothing to do with the review process or the amount fined but takes all the heat, i never once hear anyone cursing merton hanks.

[GBMelBlount]

It's funny. Not once does the article mention that the hit wasn't even helmet-to-helmet.

In fact this ESPN hack flat out implied that is WAS head to head:

That's when Clark appears on the right-hand side of the screen, flying helmet-first toward Celek's head. To me, it's the definition of a terrible hit. Celek looks doomed -- both of his feet have been lifted off the grass by the linebackers -- and the on-field officials in fact rule that he was no longer making forward progress. That makes Celek defenseless, which makes the hit illegal (Clark drew a 15-yard flag as well as Aikman's on-air ire, it turns out), which means he's due a big fine. That's the simple math of prevention.

Terrible? Perhaps. Illegal? Not a chance.

[Craic]

It's funny. Not once does the article mention that the hit wasn't even helmet-to-helmet.

Uh, yeah, it was absolutely a helmet to helmet hit.

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-h...s-at-officials

Watch the video to the end, the last angle shows CLEARLY that he cranked Celek in the head.

[steelreserve]

I remember this. The original title of the article was something like "I thought I was going to save football, until I tried to do Merton Hanks' job for a day." The guy thought he was going to save the game of football by increasing the amount of fines. I repeat - he actually thought he would be doing some good. It's both sad and frightening that so many people actually believe in that.

[bayz101]

Uh, yeah, it was absolutely a helmet to helmet hit.

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-h...s-at-officials

Watch the video to the end, the last angle shows CLEARLY that he cranked Celek in the head.

WOW. Everything I've said to this point makes no sense. Considering the timing, I pretty much associated this article with Clark's latest hit in NY, and replaced all of the "Philadelphia" words with "New York" in my head.

I was wondering why Brent Celek was on the Giants.

That was a helmet-to-helmet, though, but his latest certainly was not.

[Craic]

WOW. Everything I've said to this point makes no sense. Considering the timing, I pretty much associated this article with Clark's latest hit in NY, and replaced all of the "Philadelphia" words with "New York" in my head.

I was wondering why Brent Celek was on the Giants.

That was a helmet-to-helmet, though, but his latest certainly was not.

I hate it when I do that. I'd give you credit that may you thought he was traded . . . but it's after the trade deadline.

[Devilsdancefloor]

WOW. Everything I've said to this point makes no sense. Considering the timing, I pretty much associated this article with Clark's latest hit in NY, and replaced all of the "Philadelphia" words with "New York" in my head.

I was wondering why Brent Celek was on the Giants.

That was a helmet-to-helmet, though, but his latest certainly was not.

i thought for sure he was going to get a fine for the hit

(see what happens on days after you dance sinnimon! )