Quote:
Originally Posted by ThaVirus
I’ve seen people arguing that Mustapha let up on the rushing TD to avoid a penalty.
There is no end to the delusion.
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He did let up. But it was a concession more than an attempt to avoid a penalty.
He he NOT let up and lowered the boom, I wouldn't have been upset with that either. It was a close enough question on a 4th down in a key moment of the ballgame. Had he gone 100 mph and knocked PM into next week (like he did with Hunt in the 1st quarter) I wouldn't have been mad at him.
It's his job. Finish the play.
But he didn't.
If the 'soft ass rules' had anything to do with that, it's because they've taken that sort of lunatic killer mentality out of defensive players. 15-20 years ago, every single defensive player in the league cleans his clock there because that's just how you were taught.
Now? Eh. Not really. Speed, technique, savvy - those are what defenses focus on. Emotion and fury? Eh, it's different.
Did the rules impact Mustafa on this specific play in that they encouraged him to avoid a flag? No. Because who cares? It's an unnecessary roughness that would've made the touchback that much easier. It's a nothing penalty. But did the rules create a mentality shift among NFL defenders where that sort of play isn't finished the way it used to be? Yeah, I can buy that.
And hell, maybe that's a good thing. If Mustafa concusses Mahomes, that ain't great for the league. But if some 4th round rookie safety goes viral for a week or so and then the world moves on because he DIDN'T kill the baddest MFer on the planet - well that's probably a net gain for everyone really.