Seattle Seahawks: Quandre Diggs didn’t deserve ejection
Seattle Seahawks safety Quandre Diggs made a hard hit late in the first quarter of Sunday night’s game on a New England receiver. It earned him a 15-yard penalty and an ejection. The officials got it half right.
Quandre Diggs is a hard hitter. The Seattle Seahawks safety has delivered his share of punishing blows upon his opponents. Sunday night, the game officials thought he took it a step too far. They were wrong, and it could have cost his team the game.
Playing Rule Article 8: It is a foul if a player lowers his head to initiate and make contact with his helmet against an opponent. The player may be disqualified. Applies to any player anywhere on the field. The player may be disqualified.
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) March 27, 2018
On the play in question, Diggs absolutely leveled New England receiver N’Keal Harry on a 12-yard pass over the middle. How Harry held on to the ball after the hit, then got up, is unfathomable. The result for Seattle however, was a 15-yard personal foul followed by the Diggs ejection.
Somewhere along the line, the NFL needs to clarify the penalty in terms of intent. Not every player is Vontaze Burfict. Football is a contact sport. Diggs made a hard hit, a very hard hit, but it definitely was not dirty.
Rehashing the incident
Did Diggs initiate a helmet-to-helmet hit? Yes. Was it a personal foul? Yes, Harry fits the definition of a defenseless receiver as he caught the ball and started to turn upfield. It was a clear unnecessary roughness call per the rules.
Should Diggs have been ejected? Officials made the decision on review, but it was an arbitrary application of the rule and the wrong thing to do.
There was no intent to injure, which isn’t a requirement. Why isn’t it a requirement? Anyone who follows sports knows the difference between a clean and dirty play.
Diggs was trying to separate Harry from the ball with a hard hit. But after watching the video several times, two things stood out. One, it looks as if Diggs was trying to lodge the ball loose with his shoulder. Two, Harry lowered his head first.
If anything, it was an error of execution on Diggs’ part. The personal foul call was absolutely correct. He probably deserves a fine as well. However, the ejection afterward was debatable. There was no intent to go helmet-to-helmet and certainly no intent to injure.
The Seahawks needed Diggs for the game. He was taken away from the team, and it was completely subjective.
https://twitter.com/rileymichel/status/1307846811541884928
Do you think it was the right call to eject Seattle Seahawks safety Quandre Diggs for his hit on N’Keal Harry? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.