Buffalo Bills defensive end Mario Williams, following Week One’s blow out loss to the New York Jets, claimed that Jets’ right tackle Austin Howard was hitting him in the face all game long. Whether it be on purpose or accident the Buffalo News proved Williams’ claim.
In the Buffalo News’ Press Blog, an article titled “Damien Woody: Mario Williams got dominated” a picture was inserted that perfectly exemplified the validity of Williams’ claim. You can see the photo by clicking on the link.
The interesting thing is that hands to the face is a penalty in the National Football League. The reason is that grabbing the facemask has the potential to cause an injury. It also stuns defenders for a second, giving the quarterback an extra second to get rid of the ball. In a typical pass play where the quarterback gets rid of the ball in four seconds or so, an extra second makes a big difference.
After the game, Jets head coach Rex Ryan denied Howard did anything wrong and Bills head coach Chan Gailey dismissed it as inconsequential. The question is how would the game have been changed if the referees did their job and called illegal use of the hands penalties?
