The NFL has reportedly determined that Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith performed an illegal hip-drop tackle that resulted in Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin suffering a dislocated ankle on Monday night.
Smith violated the rule and his name is expected to be included tomorrow on the list of players fined forWeek Seven, according to Mark Maske of the Washington Post.
The officials on the field did not flag Smith for a hip-drop tackle. The NFL Players Association opposed this year’s rule change banning hip-drop tackles in large part because the players believe the rule is ill-defined, and the fact that players are getting fined for tackles that the officials didn’t flag tends to support that criticism.
Smith declined to say whether he has heard that the NFL is fining him, but he did say he respects Godwin and would never want to see a player get injured, while also noting that in the fast pace of an NFL game it’s hard for a player to know whether the tackle he’s committing is a violation of the new hip-drop tackle ban. It’s also hard for the officials to know. But the league reviews every play and determined that on this one, Smith broke the rule.
