Tom Brady wants rule change after Chris Godwin injury

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin will miss the remainder of the season after he suffered an injury on a low hit in Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints. If Tom Brady had his way, the way Godwin was tackled would have resulted in a penalty.

Godwin tore his ACL on a legal hit from Saints defensive back PJ Williams. During the latest episode of his “Lets Go!” podcast, Brady said he wants that type of tackle officiated out of the game.

“Chris got hit in the knees (Sunday) which is a play I think they ought to take out of the game of football from a receiver standpoint,” Brady said. “You know, I’ve kind of talked to the (NFLPA) about it for a while, and I’d like to speak to the Competition Committee at some point this offseason. I’ve seen that hit too many times where a defenseless pass-catcher is in the process of catching the ball and then he’s hit by the defender.”

Brady said the counterargument is that you can’t hit a defender in the head anymore. However, he noted that several rules have been implemented to prevent players from hitting opponents in the knee area. You can’t hit a quarterback in the knee. Low blocks are also illegal now, and so on.

“You can’t hit a DB in the knees. Except we’re somehow allowing hits on defenseless receivers in the knees,” Brady added. “So it needs to be addressed and it needs to be really thought out. It really impacts guys’ careers.”

Many players have said they would rather be hit in the head and neck area than in the knee. Brady spoke about that several years ago, and his opinion obviously hasn’t changed. He specified that he doesn’t agree with low hits on “defenseless” receivers, so perhaps he feels a rule should be implemented for certain situations.

Brady has become a big advocate for rule changes during the latter part of his career. He unloaded on a more trivial change during the offseason.