Jaelon Acklin Injury.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats
1

TSN was quick to notice that Jaelon Acklin left the game with an injury, but they totally missed the play on which he was injured.

They speculated on the cause of the injury, but they got it wrong.

We didn’t actually witness the injury in the stadium, because it turns out that he was injured on a Cameron Marshall run to the opposite side of the field; this happened a few minutes into the 2nd Q. But in the stadium, we did notice that he was down on the turf following the play. And we noticed when he was escorted to the sidelines.

It was not until we watched the TSN broadcast that we noticed that he was injured on a dirty helmet to helmet hit administered by Shaquille Richardson ( #1 ). As I mentioned, the injury happened on a running play to the opposite side of the field. Acklin was basically watching the play and walking parallel to the line of scrimmage and Richardson came downfield and delivered a vicious hit to Acklin, who had no idea what was coming.

During the TSN broadcast, while discussing the injury, Matthew Scianitti correctly pointed out that there had been a lot of trash talk going on between Acklin and the Toronto DB’s, but somehow TSN totally missed this play. They showed a replay of a previous Acklin reception, with a fairly benign tackle. The actual play where he was injured was never replayed - but the dirty hit was captured at the bottom of the screen during the live action.

So, I have a question about this:
Q1: I cannot say that Shaquille Richardson intended to injure Acklin, but he definitely intended to deliver a message to a defenseless receiver. And it was definitely a deliberate helmet to helmet collision to the side of Acklin’s head. Given the fact that Toronto’s season is over (Richardson’s season is over), and there is no guarantee that he will ever play another game in the CFL, what recourse does the CFL have in terms of doling out a suspension or some other form of punishment ??

While I am at it, I have a very different question about another player that suffered a concussion during this game.
Q2: Kennan Gilchrist (#54) was knocked out cold when he suffered a brutal head first collision with his own player Freddie Bishop III (#56). The Argos’ training staff managed to wake him up, and he staggered off the field (I believe near the end of the 3rd Q, but I do not recall exactly). My question is similar to the previous question. Now that Toronto’s season is over, and they have cleared out their lockers, what sort of medical attention would Gilchrist get from the Argos’ medical staff, as he recovers from that brutal collision ??

2

Rumor has it hes okay and will be good to go.

3

In theory I guess they could fine him.

I’m not sure the league cares as much about injuries to receivers as they do about QBs. Even less so if it didn’t get attention on the telecast. And I know with certainty that the CFLPA does not care about injuries to players as much as they do about protecting dirty players.

Also, I am convinced that some players fully intend to injure other players. Many hits could not otherwise be explained.

4

Why not levy a fine if the play warrants it? If he hasn’t received his final paycheque, the team can deduct it. If they are unable, and he comes back, he has to pay it. If he doesn’t come back, register it as a lien.

That’s the trouble with enacting policies, they have to be “policed”, or they are meaningless.

5

Coach said when asked by Scianitti “he will be fine, its just precautionary”

6

ExPat: Totally agree that “some players fully intend to injure other players.”

It has always boggled my mind that these dirty players have a mentality geared up for that. Don’t they realize that it could be them that could also be deliberately injured with a career-ending dirty hit? Big hits are part of the game but dirty hits after the play are inexcusable and ruin the game. I’m glad to see that Simoni has toned things down lately …but he still makes great tackles.

And any HC who condones dirty hits also needs to be taken to task by the league. A fine after a second offence by a player would be appropriate. Same goes for the fighting we often see late in games where face masking is common.

I hope the CFL does not stoop as low as the Philadelphia Flyers and their coach Fred Shero back in the 70’s. His encouragement of goon-style hockey aimed at players like Bobby Orr and Gilbert Perreault was ignored by the NHL. It turned me off the NHL for many years.

7

Absolutely bang on mr62cats. Fine the coach and the team and I suspect there would be more internal discipline, or perhaps some culling of repeat offenders. I notice some teams sub for a player who has been penalized on a dead ball foul, for a chat with the coach. Give him a chance to calm down and reflect. I’d like to see more of that by all teams.

8

If the coach encourages the goon behaviour then he should also be fined. But if say Orlondo actively discourages that type of behaviour then I don’t think that is fair.

Repeat offenders might cause some animosity in the room and would most likely be released. The thing is how do you release a Simoni? Would Orlondo gladly give up some salary to keep his All-Star linebacker? Quite the conundrum. ;D

9

Good point Krisiun, but I was thinking more of the dead ball penalties, ones that occur after the whistle, and not as part of the play. Another conundrum could be where a guy like Van Zeyl steps in to “protect? a guy like Speedy. Something I personally favour.

In the end, I suppose every coach has to do a review of any frequently penalized player’s value versus his cost to the team.

10

Glad to hear that Acklin’s injury is not serious.

And there seems to be consensus on this forum that the League needs to punish dirty players. Having said that, I am somewhat disturbed by people comparing Simoni Lawrence’s aggressive play, between the lines and to the whistle, to the dirty hit that Richardson laid on Acklin.

I was really hoping to hear that the Tiger-Cats had brought this dirty hit to the attention of the CFL head office, and the League would at least review it for possible action against Richardson. But instead we hear nothing. In my opinion, this is not consistent with a league that claims that player safety is paramount; that player safety is considered first and foremost.

When the League fails to take action, the players may feel the need to administer justice on the field. If Richardson returns to Canada next year, it may be a good idea for him to keep his head on a swivel, and not just stand around the pile at the end of the play . . . just sayin’.

11

It's good, for Shaquille Richardson, that he went after Acklin's head rather than make a gesture at him.

12

Oh my! That really sucks… Mind you, I didn’t see the gesture - what was so bad about it? Gestures mean different things to different people…

13

For that matter, most of us did not see the headshot either.

14

We have three Ticats on this list, 2 of them rookies! :slight_smile:

15

That’s what wins you ballgames…and championships.

16

Banks and Addison don’t hurt either regardless of the drops they may have had.
In fact, its because of these guys, the guys on the list are so good as the other teams top defenders are trying to stop the B&A show.

17

aka The Killer B’s. (Brandon and Bralon).