On Thursday, November 14th the Cleveland Browns played the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football. The game looked to be a statement for the Browns to get them back in playoff contention.
This looked like it would be a good night for the NFL due to drawing a total viewership of 16.1 million people, up 8% from the Thursday Night average, but then everything changed for the league.
In front of a national audience Browns Defensive End, Myles Garrett, and Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback, Mason Rudolph got into a scuffle. It started with Rudolph jawing at Garrett after a hit that he deemed late but ended with Garret taking off Rudolph’s helmet and hitting him with it.
This display of on-field violence is an awful look for the NFL, however, this situation could have ended up much worse. Mason Rudolph ended up being relatively fine after the incident as Garrett didn’t make contact with the crown of his helmet as he initially intended.
All of this led to some, like ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter, to call what Garrett did assault and say that Mason Rudolph should consider pressing charges.
While the idea of pressing charges is somewhat ridiculous, it does show the severity of what happened.
The NFL responded to the Garrett helmet incident by giving him an indefinite suspension that will most likely be a suspension for the rest of the Browns season or six games. This would be the longest suspension in the history of the NFL and some may consider it unfair because of the length of former suspensions.
However, I do not believe that this suspension is harsh enough and if the NFL only makes Myles Garett sit out six games that this will be a major stain on the NFL.
This suspension would have little effect on the Cleveland Browns as they are likely out of the playoffs even if they win every single game left on their schedule, they are still likely to miss out on the playoffs.
What makes the situation even worse is the current situation the NFL is in when it comes to concussions and CTE. Concussions are causing more and more parents to stop their children from participating in youth football. This will cause huge problems to the NFL down the road and the NFL had a chance to make a statement about player safety with Myles Garrett.
What makes this situation especially important is where Mason Rudolph was hit, if it was any other body part the six-game suspension would be just but the ramifications of hitting Rudolph, or any player, in the head could have been very bad.
The ideal suspension for me would have the rest of this season and half of next season. This way the NFL can make a stand against what Myles Garrett did and show their dedication to player safety. This would also have a great enough effect against the Browns to be a real punishment without causing them to completely lose for an entire season.
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