Playing defense in the 2023 NFL isn’t easy. Even with defenses seemingly thriving better than ever, a lot of rules are skewed greatly in favor of protecting offensive skill players.
Keanu Neal had an awful reminder of this reality against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
On an early key third down, the Pittsburgh Steelers safety pressured Trevor Lawrence and made what appeared to be a routine form tackle. That was not the officials’ interpretation. They penalized Neal with an erroneous roughing the passer call. (Lawrence did complete the pass to Christian Kirk anyway, but it’s about the principle!)
And the more I watch it, I’m really unsure what Neal was supposed to do differently because that is a classic football hit — exactly the way it’s taught.
Roughing the passer 🤦♂️ #Steelers pic.twitter.com/R8h6vBmp9v
— Chad Tyson (@chadtyson) October 29, 2023
I understand that officials will (rightfully) err on the side of caution and give defenders less of the benefit of the doubt. It’s probably one of the main ways to keep pro football solvent and safe enough in the modern era. But horrible calls like this on Neal still stand out like sore thumbs.