NOVEMBER 21: Derrick Brooks, the jointly-appointed hearing officer overseeing Jackson’s appeal, has upheld the ban. Jackson will be forced to sit out four games, the NFL announced on Tuesday. As a result of the decision, the veteran will miss a total of six games this season for illegal hits; this latest suspension will cost him nearly $559K in forfeited salary. The disciplinary issues will no doubt hurt Jackson’s market this offseason, as he is a pending free agent.
NOVEMBER 20: Kareem Jackson has been slapped with his second suspension of the season. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that the Broncos safety has been suspended four games “for repeated violations of the player safety rules.”
In the NFL’s release (h/t NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport), NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan cited a play from yesterday’s game where Jackson made illegal contact with Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs. Specifically, the league issued a suspension for violation of Rule 12, Section 2, Article 10 which states that “it is a foul if a player lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent.”
“Illegal acts that are flagrant and jeopardize the safety of players will not be tolerated,” Runyan wrote in a letter to Jackson. “The League will continue to stress enforcement of the rules that prohibit using your helmet to make forcible contact with your opponent.”
Following Denver’s Week 7 matchup with the Packers, Jackson was hit with a four-game ban for violating the league’s unnecessary roughness rules. Following an appeal, that suspension was knocked down to two games. The 35-year-old was just activated from the reserve/suspension list last week. Jackson was also tossed from Denver’s Week 2 game (and later fined) for a flagrant foul.
Jackson will be allowed to appeal his latest suspension. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the safety will indeed by appealing the punishment. If he does indeed sit four games, he’ll be eligible to return to the active roster in Week 16.
After spending the first nine seasons of his career with the Texans, Jackson joined the Broncos prior to the 2019 campaign. He started all 61 of his appearances through his first four seasons in Denver, and he’s started each of his eight appearances this year. The veteran has collected 51 tackles and two interceptions in 2023, and he had nine tackles in his return from suspension this past weekend.
Jackson clearly needs more practice with hitting with his shoulder, as that seemed to be his intent on that play – and the on-field officials seemed to agree. Thus if the NFL feels it was an egregious penalty worth a four game suspension they should similarly penalize the officials who saw it and didn’t throw a potentially game-changing flag.
What a joke. If anyone’s actually done research and followed up with its entirety, Jackson actually called the NFL asking what he can do better, and got no reply back. Also Dobbs at that point wasn’t even considered a qb, seeing how the ball was tossed back to him at that point it renders him a running back. Lastly, it wasn’t even helmet to helmet contact. The NFL’s gotten so soft these days to fit Goodell’s agenda, sooner or later it’ll turn into flag football.
If you read the article, it was leading with the helmet. Should’ve been flagged for 15 yards on that play.
I think they gave him 4 games because he’s going to appeal and probably go down to 2-3 … although he is a repeat offender so who knows.
“If anyone’s actually done research and followed up with its entirety, Jackson actually called the NFL asking what he can do better, and got no reply back.”
Maybe he should just ask his teammates, because they’re not getting suspended. Or ask like 99% of all other players in the NFL, because they’re not getting suspended, either. Don’t lead with the helmet. It’s not rocket science.
See, this tells me right there that you never watched close replays of it. The shoulder was actually lowered first. If that’s your case then let’s talk about all the hits similar over the past few weeks not named khack? Just because panties wearing goodell wants to make him the poster boy? Even for borderline hits? You sound like the Vikings fans crying that it “cost them the game” even though they were outplayed. It’s not rocket science.
I’ve seen it. I’m just not a doofus homer who makes excuses for a repeat offender of the rules. I realize that sometimes a hit isn’t called correctly, but acting like Jackson is an innocent being targeted by Goodell is foolishness.
Also, I’m a Giants fan. I couldn’t give a hoot about what Vikings fans think cost them the game. Just letting you know that there’s a way to play within the rules and that if Jackson needs guidance on how to do that, he can ask literally any of his teammates for pointers.
You’re right, you’re a keyboard cheeto duster. The rule in place is for defenseless players, or helmet to helmet. Seeing as the tight end was lined up under center, dobbs is a runner and not defenseless. The game is about inches. Plus in the giants game 2 weeks ago I watched a helmet led hit. I don’t see them getting suspended? As I stated, goodell and his panties just want to try to “make a statement.” Head back to the woodworks, where you came up from under.
I watched it several times. There was no helmet-to-helmet. Jackson hits Dobbs in the chest. However, Jackson did definitely launch himself headfirst, which is the classic violation of the college style targeting rule. The NFL doesn’t emphasize that language as much as the NCAA does, but they also are more arbitrary with how they enforce the rules. Dobbs was a runner, which if I remember right, removes his lowering the helmet protections, but I’m not sure if Jackson’s launch was against the rules. Apparently it wasn’t, or the refs straight up missed it, because it was very clearly apparent and it wasn’t flagged. Dobbs was losing the ball already from another tackle before Jackson reached him, so I don’t think that the hit caused the turnover on its own. I do agree that the NFL weaponizes that rule against defenders, as they do with every single other rule, but Jackson did launch himself clearly. I’m just not sure how illegal that is against an established runner, as Dobbs was.
Either way, the NFL has made it painfully clear that they are watching Jackson’s every move at all times. I suppose he thought that he wasn’t doing anything wrong, but he should know that. He has turned hitting into such a huge part of his game in his later years (and, until this year, done it very well penalty wise for the kind of contact he made for his smaller size), and is a smart player otherwise. Without this element of his game, though, he probably doesn’t have nearly as much value. Whether it’s his fault or not, removing that would probably make Jackson not worth too much to teams and may lead to retirement, which is probably what the NFL wants. Is that fair? I don’t know. But I do think that is what the league would prefer.
An ejection, an original 4-gm ban and now this? The appeal should be rejected outright.
This Cost the Vikings the game!
Excuses Excuses, they lost this game because they were outplayed!!!
I think that he was kidding. I hope so, at least.
Dobbs was already losing the ball before Jackson hit him, anyway. Browning actually ripped the ball out from behind before Jackson made contact.
They lost the game because they choked. Enough said.
Good- make it for the season.
No flag on the play but let’s suspend him anyway. What a joke.
Because calls on the field never get missed.
Because it’s bullshit. Let’s just take tackling out the game.
The officials who missed calling the penalty should be suspended. Viewers all saw it as it happened and on the multiple replays shown after the fact. Ridiculous that a player suspension results from from a play on which no penalty was called by the game officials.
I bet this suspension doesn’t get reduced at all, he was already suspended once for the same thing. They’re not gonna ease up on strike two, and a third infraction for the same thing will probably lead to a one year ban.
I always liked a little Kareem in my coffee.
Kareem just can’t adjust. Leading with the helmet, hitting guys after they’ve caught the ball in the end zone, etc. Stuff like that doesn’t fly any more.
Don’t think he’s ready to retire but it might be hard to find a contract next year. Not sure how many teams will want a player who makes unnecessary penalties and gets suspended frequently.
Perhaps Jackson and other players should learn how to actually “tackle” someone.
I do not consider running into a player at full speed and knocking them senseless should be considered tackling.
If players learned the basics of tackling, there would be fewer injuries to players as well.
The game was orginally named “Tackle Football” but apparently that has passed.
I also think that quarterback “hits” is a stat that just begs injury to the quarterbacks.
I know that defensive players need stats for contract negotiation but most “hits” occur after the quarterback has already thrown the football and should actually be flagged as roughing the passer penalties.
Jackson is a habitual offender and the league should consider permanently suspending him for his violations.
I have often wondered if players would slam into other players if they didn’t wear a helmet…oh well.