Graney: Raiders unsure about roughing the passer penalties

Raiders coach Josh McDaniels is right. Confused might not be the correct word when discussing how certain defensive players across the NFL feel right about now.

Frustrated.

Exasperated.

Angry?

They are more and more caught in a devil of a predicament when it comes to rushing a quarterback. A bright light again shines on roughing the passer penalties as the health and safety of those throwing the ball has come under even more scrutiny than usual.

The concussion suffered by Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa re-engaged discussions about what constitutes roughing the passer. It has also led, players will tell you, to an overreaction by officials throwing subjective yellow flags for the infraction.

The number of such penalties being enforced disputes that notion. Doesn’t mean it’s wrong.

Controversial calls

It was during Week 5 when two such calls were questioned, first against Falcons lineman Grady Jarrett and then against Chiefs lineman Chris Jones.

Jarrett was called for unnecessarily throwing Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady to the ground. Jones was flagged for landing on top of Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.

Neither was a clear-cut penalty. In fact, in the case of Jones and Carr, the ball had been stripped and was loose when Jones recovered it.

“We all want our quarterback to remain healthy as long as we can, so the goal is obviously the right goal,” McDaniels said. “I think sometimes it takes away from the aggression that the defensive players need to play with. It’s a fine line.

“You’ve got to be aggressive, you’re going to have to play hard. You’re going to have to try to get to the passer, and then when you get there, you’ve just got to try to do the right thing.”

A fact the league would be sure to point out: Through the season’s first five weeks, 28 roughing the passer penalties were called, according to The Associated Press. Last season, that number was 51 after five weeks.

Carr said he only knows the rules — that he expects a flag if a defender lands on him with full body weight or if he is struck in the head or neck area or below the knee.

That quarterbacks are much better protected now than when he entered the league nine years ago, when he never thought he’d get a roughing the passer call.

“And if I’m honest,” Carr said, “I was more injured then — hopefully it stays that way — than I am now.”

Sometimes, it’s better not to tackle the quarterback at all.

Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby zeroed in on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes early in the Chiefs’ 30-29 victory on Oct. 10.

Upon reaching him, Crosby wrapped Mahomes up. The whistle blew. Sack recorded.

“Ever since I got in the league (in 2019), that’s all people talk about — roughing the passer,” Crosby said. “As a rusher, you’re trying to get home. It’s not easy to get sacks. The tough thing is, you never know what angle you’re going to be coming at and how under control you are. It’s rough, but you have to try your best.”

A ‘guessing game’

The Rams have another idea: According to reports, the team will submit a proposal to the league that calls for all personal fouls, including roughing the passer, to be reviewed.

They tried the same thing last year. It was unanimously voted down by the NFL’s competition committee. It probably would be again.

“It’s really just a guessing game,” Raiders defensive end Malcolm Koonce said. “You tackle them, and if you get called for it, you get called for it. Kind of sucks. It’s frustrating, because if you make a great play for your team in a big situation and it gets taken away, you feel like you’re not playing the other team, but (factors) that don’t involve the game.”

Sure. Those subjective calls again being questioned.

Not much has changed.

Not much will, either.

Ed Graney is a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing and can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.