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Around SBN: The Gift Of The 2003 Tigers

Keith Rivers is "probably" done for the season

During the super-close game that required a late fourth quarter 16-yard touchdown pass to Hines Ward from Byron Leftwich at the two minute mark, the Bengals' Keith Rivers had been absent from the game. On the fourth play of the game, Ben Roethlisberger completed a short six-yard pass to the right for tight end Matt Spaeth. Rivers, in a zone closer to the middle of the field, started tracking Spaeth when Ward came back to stick Rivers, breaking his jaw. Hines hit Rivers, who wasn't looking at him, preparing for a tackle on Spaeth.

Rivers is out for the season.

Ward doesn't know what anyone is talking about regarding the hit being illegal. "I'm not doing anything illegal. It was a clean hit. I didn't stand over the guy or anything. I just celebrated the same as a guy does when he gets a sack. We'll see. I'm not going to change my ways. If they're going to keep fining me for that, then I'm going to get ined all year. I don't know if I hurt him or not, but that wasn't my inention. I saw he was hurt, said a little prayer for him and that was it. I've been playing like that for 11 years. I guess I don't know what people are griping about."

Here's the hit, already on YouTube.

Poll
Was Hines Ward's hit on Keith Rivers a cheap shot?
Yes
116 votes
No
193 votes

309 votes | Poll has closed

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Legit hit

Looks helmet to helmet, but not really intentional and Ward shouldn’t be fined for that. Ward could have hurt himself the way he lowered his head; looked like the pollack hit to me. Just have to watch yourself on the field, but sometimes that will happen. I wish we had a WR that would do that.

by mskiles314 on Oct 19, 2008 7:11 PM EDT reply actions  

Double Standard

If Hines Ward was hit like that by a defensive player, it is a 15-yard penalty and a fine. I have no problem with hard blocks, but Ward has a penchant for lowering his head and delivering helmet to helmet “hits” – usually when someone is not looking. If he simply used his shoulder, however, it would have been legit. Personally, I’d love to see Ward get his jaw broken in a similar manner, and see how “clean” he considers that hit.

"Ryan, Things in here don't react too well to bullets." - Marko Ramius

by TarZander on Oct 19, 2008 9:06 PM EDT reply actions  

If it was Houshmandzadeh delivering the blow....

…against Lamarr Woodley would we be having this discussion? But because the Bengals don’t hit like that…the question is purely hypothetical. It wasn’t a cheap shot—its football—-contact sport, remember? If the Bengals blocked like that we wouldn’t be 0-7.

by goffchile on Oct 20, 2008 8:43 AM EDT reply actions  

I don't see it as an issue of retaliation...

…I just want to see a highlight film of Bengals leveling other teams players. Right now that highlight film consists of Cedric Benson sticking Polamalu—great—lets do more of that—and on defense too! I don’t consider it cheap shot football to physically push around another team. That is how you wear the other team down. Sometimes there is a fine line—but I didn’t see anything illegal about Ward’s block.

I guess I find it frustrating too not only watch the Bengals lose on the scoreboard, but to get physically pushed around as well—-although the two are very much related.

by goffchile on Oct 20, 2008 9:55 AM EDT reply actions  

Was that the ball carrier behind Ward as he made the hit?

If it was, then it was just a good block. If it wasn’t, then it was head-hunting.

Ward tends to hit defensive play-makers alot. I can understand a good block, but it’s a little cheap when he blind-sides players away from the action. Obviously, it’s all legal before the whistle blows, but again, it just seems like a cheap-shot.

by BAL_Hawk on Oct 20, 2008 1:44 PM EDT reply actions  

I think Ward gets fined/suspended

Looks like a legal hit, but the dipping of the head prior to making contact will be his undoing. The shoulder gets there first, but the crown of Ward’s helmet is what smacks Rivers’ jaw. If you’re not looking at what you’re tackling, the NFL will get you.

I think given the fact he’s already been fined twice (Jacksonville, Baltimore) this year for “unecessary roughness” after-the-fact, combined with the fact that he, Tomlin and Polamalu have all publicly criticized the league, will get him a decent fine.

I’d rather see him get his ankle snapped, but I’ll take what I can get.

by bengalred on Oct 20, 2008 5:05 PM EDT reply actions  

I fucking loathe Hines Ward

but live and- on countless replays, it looks more like he ducks his head to protect himself and does the most damage with his shoulder. The damage was a combination of the angle and Rivers failing to keep his “head on a swivel” as the players say. That said, it was a tremendously physical hit and I’ve never seen any of our wideouts doing it. The way our D was fired up in the aftermath, I would have given up the flag and had someone expendable like Hebert or Lynch pop him coming across the middle. Have Marvin pick up the tab on the fine, should one be forthcoming. I mean, if Tim Lincecom(sp?) comes high and tight, drops, say, Jay Bruce, you bet your ass Edinson Volquez is plunking some Giant next inning.

by IgnatiusJReilly on Oct 21, 2008 12:23 AM EDT reply actions  

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