During the Cowboys/Seahawks game, Golden Tate unloaded a huge crack back block on LB Sean Lee. Interestingly enough, that hit is actually illegal. Score another one for the replacement refs.
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First, it is completely legal. The commentators don’t know the rules.
“Defenseless players are defined as (a) a player in the act of or just after throwing a pass; (b) a receiver catching or attempting to catch a pass; (c) a runner already in the grasp of a tackler and whose forward progress has been stopped; (d) a kickoff or punt returner attempting to field a kick in the air; and (e) a player on the ground at the end of a play.”
- nfl.com
Lee was none of these.
Second, The only reason his helmet hit the Lee in the glass jaw is because Tate is way smaller. 200lbs vs. 245lbs. I takes a lot of courage to block a guy that is 50lbs bigger than you. What should he have done? Hit him higher? Lead with his chest and scorpion himself. Give me a break. If you’ve ever been a receiver taking on a Middle Line backer, you know you will injure yourself if you take them on high, or lead with your body. It’s unfortunate that Lee got hurt, but if he didn’t, everyone would have just called it a great block. Give Tate some credit on a great block.