Cortland Finnegan on hitting rules: 'It's crazy'

As far as Tennessee Titans cornerback Cortland Finnegan is concerned, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has gone too far in his attempt to tweak the rules to protect defenseless players.

Finnegan called Goodell, "A guy who has never played the game," further telling the Tennessean that not running into opposing players to comply with the rules is unrealistic.

“You have milliseconds — not even seconds — and it’s not like you try to do it. It just so happens in that split-second you have a chance to tackle a guy and sometimes it happens to be that way,” Finnegan said. “Last year having to dive at guys’ knees because you’re not sure … If they duck, and you’re still helmet-to-helmet with them, then it is your fine, it is a penalty on you.

“It has sort of taken the edge of the players who really like the physical play. But I’m not surprised. It’s crazy.”

Finnegan isn't alone in having a problem with the rules.

“As a defensive player, it bites," Titans linebacker Gerald McRath said. "It is one of those things where we’re going to complain and moan when the ref throws a flag, but at the same time we know the league is trying to protect its players. We have no choice (but) to respect it because at the end of the day, no player wants to see another player injured. But that still doesn’t make it any easier for us.”

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