The NFL needs to make a change to its rules so that quarterbacks are not rewarded for fake slides as Russell Wilson was.
The Seattle Seahawks had a second-and-six at the San Francisco 28 with under four minutes left during Sunday’s game between the teams. Wilson scrambled for a gain of four yards. He faked like he was going to slide before deciding to go for a few more yards. Wilson then finally decided to slide, and that’s when 49ers safety Jimmie Ward hit the quarterback.
Ward hit Wilson in the head/neck area, which resulted in an unnecessary roughness penalty. This GIF shows only the very beginning of Wilson’s fake slide when he stuck the ball out but mostly misses it and shows only the hit.
Quarterbacks should not be allowed to fake a slide and bait a defender into tackling them so that they draw a penalty. Once a quarterback fakes a slide, they should lose all the protection they get for giving themselves up. The same thing happened a few weeks ago on a Sam Darnold run, although he ended up with a touchdown.
The call gave Seattle a new set of downs. That enabled the Seahawks to use more time, score a touchdown and go up by three possessions. They won 37-27.
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