James Harrison is expecting a ruling today on his appeal of his one game suspension, handed down from the league for his hit on Colt McCoy last Thursday. McCoy suffered a concussion following helmet-to-helmet contact between he and Harrison as Harrison hit him just after he released the ball.
Harrison had his appeal heard on Wednesday by former coach Ted Cottrell.
Safety Troy Polamalu indicated that the team was instructed not to comment on the suspension, and kept his response to simply, “No comment.” Other Steelers weren’t quite so silent.
“Expressing our frustrations isn’t working for us,” said safety Ryan Clark, who has been fined $40,000 this season.
Clark went on to say, “As a team, we need to stop talking about it. We need to do our best to go out and play football – that’s what our jobs are – and leave the politicking to other people.”
Cornerback Ike Taylor said, “He didn’t stomp nobody, and he didn’t punch nobody’s private area.” The stomping reference was in relation to Ndamukong Suh’s actions that earned him a two game suspension. The reference of punching somebody’s “private area” was in reference to Vikings Jared Allen, who was caught on film punching Falcons Ray Edwards in the groin while lying on the ground at the end of a play.
In spite of actions of other NFL players, Harrison’s appeal is believe to be a long shot to be overturned, and he is expected to be out for Monday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, “I think we’ve been very clear about our commitment to player health and safety.”
“The rules apply to 32 teams and every player. … We want people to conform to the rules, and we will not relent on that.”
