The Bills have lost tight end Chris Gragg for the year with a torn ACL. Washington defensive back DeAngelo Hall has explained that he went low because of the rules limiting hits to the head.
“The good thing is you’re not targeting the shots to the head and all that,” Bills coach Rex Ryan told reporters on Sunday. “I think we’re getting that out of the game, which is a real positive. This was an unfortunate thing, there’s no question about it. Could’ve been avoided? Maybe, but that’s the tough thing that you’re seeing. The good thing is we are taking the hits to the head [out of the game], and I think that’s a great thing sometimes -- this was an unfortunate thing. Was it dirty or whatever? I don’t know. I think you can probably tackle a guy above the waist or something but unfortunately, this game, it’s a physical game.”
Physical it is, and it’s another reason why the NFL should seriously consider reducing or eliminating the preseason. That will only happen, however, if the regular season also grows. Which will still result in 20 games being played (unless one regular-season game is traded for two preseason games), but at least more of them will count.
