A roughing the passer penalty on Bills edge rusher Gregory Rousseau against Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert in the first quarter of Buffalo’s win is sparking absolute chaos online, and honestly, the league needs to get its act together. With 2:51 left in the first, Rousseau, affectionately known as “Groot,” was flagged for 15 yards for a hit on Herbert, even though the play showed Herbert getting rid of the ball as Rousseau began his tackle. Groot wrapped Herbert up, and as they fell, he let go of the quarterback, landing on him with his hands no longer touching. But because of this so-called “body weight rule” emphasis, the flag flew.
The Rulebook Says One Thing, Officials Do Another
After that play, and another similar roughing call in the Miami and Kansas City game against Patrick Mahomes, social media erupted. Everyone’s screaming the same old mantra: “yeah, the rule is dumb, but that’s the correct enforcement.” They point out this rule has been around since 1995, with an added emphasis since 2018 after Aaron Rodgers got hurt. But here’s the kicker: they’re wrong, and the NFL officials are wrong in how they’re actually calling these plays. Seriously, what is Groot supposed to do there? A Bills fan online called it “textbook” and said it was just “momentum/physics.” Robert Griffin III even threw up the clip asking fans if they thought it was roughing the passer.
What The Rule Really Means
The NFL’s own rulebook is clear on roughing the passer. It says a defender can’t commit “intimidating and punishing acts” like “stuffing” a passer or “unnecessarily wrestling or driving him down” after the ball is thrown. Here’s the critical part: when tackling a defenseless passer, a defensive player “must not unnecessarily or violently throw him down or land on top of him with all or most of the defender’s weight.” Instead, they “must strive to fall to the side of the passer’s body, or to brace his fall with his arms.” Groot let go, his hands were off. He wasn’t unnecessarily violent. This isn’t “all or most of the defender’s weight” when he’s letting go and bracing his fall, which he clearly tried to do. The problem is defining these words like “unnecessarily” or “violently.” It’s confusing for fans, and it’s confusing for players on the field who are just trying to make a play.
This continued misapplication of the roughing the passer rule is a huge problem. It’s unfairly penalizing defenders who are trying to play within the spirit of the game and directly impacts game outcomes. The league needs to address this inconsistency now. Teams have another full week of action coming up. Let’s hope for some common sense on the field.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Buffalo Rumblings.
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