Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has joined that elite class of football players who are so brutal they are offensive to the game itself. It’s quite an accomplishment, really.
There is a line football players are not supposed to cross, and in today’s NFL, commissioner Roger Goodell draws that line on the field every week with fines for hits deemed too brutal.
There has been much debate about that line, but there can be no debate about what Suh did Thursday in the Detroit Lions’ 27-15 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
When Suh pushed offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith’s head into the ground and then stomped his right foot on Dietrich-Smith’s arm, he stomped a place for himself in NFL lore. Forever more he will be known as much for his dirty play as his ability. He was kicked out of the game and likely will face a hefty fine and suspension.
With all due respect to former Redskins offensive line coach Joe Bugel’s failed attempt to nickname his unit during his second stint under Joe Gibbs in Washington, Suh became a “Dirtbag.”
Suh’s already had a bad reputation in just his second season in the league, but the stomp on Thanksgiving will come to define him.
Of course, some dirtbags have made a good living over the years.
Conrad Dobler might have been just another obscure offensive lineman on the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1970s if he hadn’t earned the title of the dirtiest player in football, one who would punch, bite, trip and generally assault charging defensive linemen. He even made the cover of Sports Illustrated with the title “Pro Football’s Dirtiest Player.”
Johnny Sample was a cornerback for 11 seasons in the American Football League and the NFL, playing on championship teams with the Colts and the Jets. But his claim to fame was his nasty reputation. The title of his autobiography was “Confessions of a Dirty Ballplayer.”
There have been others. Steelers defensive tackle Joe Greene deserved the nickname “Mean.” He once was kicked out of a game for repeatedly kicking Cleveland’s Bob McKay in the groin. And linebacker Bill Romanowski had a long list of transgressions, from being thrown out of a game for kicking running back Larry Centers in the head to crushing one of his own teammate’s eye sockets during a scrimmage.
There was, of course, Albert Haynesworth’s 2006 head stomping of Dallas center Andre Gurode, which resulted in a five-game suspension. But Haynesworth’s indifference to playing football keeps him out of that elite class of dirtbags.
After the game Thursday, Suh said he didn’t mean it.
A lie — what else would you expect from a dirtbag?
Examiner columnist Thom Loverro is the co-host of “The Sports Fix” from noon to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on ESPN980 and espn980.com. Contact him at [email protected].
