Geno Smith ripped Isaiah Simmons for unnecessary hip-drop tackle: ‘There’s no place in this sport for that’

Geno Smith has a point. Dangerous plays like this don’t belong in the NFL.

The story from Monday night was and should be how the Seattle Seahawks ripped the New York Giants offensive line to shreds. But while Daniel Jones looks like an expensive rusty anchor on Big Blue, we can’t forget what happened between Geno Smith and Isaiah Simmons.

Early in the second quarter, Smith was running out of bounds as Simmons pulled him down in a “hip-drop” fashion. Not only was Smith clearly already running out of play, but the “hip-drop” tackle technique is notoriously dangerous, and it leaves players susceptible to severe injury.

And for a moment, with a knee injury, it did seem like Smith was seriously hurt before returning later in the game. (Note: Simmons was not penalized.)

ESPN’s Lisa Salters asked Smith about what happened in this sequence after the Seahawks’ 24-3 win. He was NOT happy about it, to say the least:

“A dirty play,” Smith said. “Dirty play. You guys could see it. It was a dirty play. There’s no place in this sport for that. And, you know, hopefully something happens. But other than that, the grace of God allowed me to come back into this game.”

Smith isn’t wrong. The NFL hasn’t officially banned “hip-drop” tackles — which would be horrific news for a lot of defenders — but they did lead to serious injuries for the Dallas Cowboys’ Tony Pollard and the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes last postseason. Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, the best recourse a defender has is dragging someone down for the tackle.

But it’s a very vulnerable position for offensive skill players, and defenders should indeed be more conscientious about their tackle choices. For what it’s worth, Simmons claimed he wasn’t trying to actively hurt Smith with his tackle:

 

Smith is fortunate his ailment wasn’t more serious.