Eric Reid was ejected before Steelers offensive linemen could do it themselves

Good Post Gazette article. Awesome how the Steelers went after Reid after the cheap shot

Quote :

They were quick to come to Ben Roethlisberger’s defense. Panthers safety Eric Reid wasn’t back on his feet for a second before he was confronted by All-Pro guard David DeCastro. Center Maurkice Pouncey arrived shortly thereafter and then the other nine members of the offense gathered around the scrum.

Moments earlier, Reid went headhunting on Roethlisberger, who had scrambled for 18 yards and slid to give himself up. Reid was ejected from the game after being assessed a personal foul penalty, and that was for the best because the Steelers didn’t take kindly to their franchise quarterback being hit.

“That’s unacceptable for any offensive lineman,” Pouncey said. “You have to protect your quarterback at all costs. We all reacted in the right way.”

“Anytime a guy gets hit like that, especially your quarterback, you kind of have to go support him and show him you have his back,” DeCastro added.  Pouncey said he had respect for Reid because he apologized to Roethlisberger, but DeCastro was irked that he lied about the play. DeCastro said Reid claimed he did not hit Roethlisberger, but replays clearly showed contact with Roethlisberger’s head.

“I didn’t see the whole play,” DeCastro said. “I just saw the reaction. I assumed it was bad. The crazy part was he said he didn’t hit him. Then you see the replay and you’re like, ‘Are you straight up blind like that? What do you think, no one’s watching?’ So that was pretty crazy.”

Reid and DeCastro both attended Stanford, but at different times. They don’t know each other. Even if they did, it doesn’t take a Rhodes Scholar to understand the reaction of Roethlisberger’s teammates.
The NFL has rules in place to protect quarterbacks. The best ones are the most expensive and the most important players for franchises. If Reid had connected flush with Roethlisberger on a helmet-to-helmet hit he could have given Roethlisberger a concussion.

“It’s crazy that you do that in this day and age,” DeCastro said. “He was sliding, going down. To come in there like that…he must not like his money.”

Reid told members of the Carolina media that there is no consistency in personal foul calls. He said Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was contacted with the crown of the helmet of a Steelers player, but there was no penalty called. He did not specify which play, but T.J. Watt’s helmet hit Newton’s shoulder when he sacked him in the first half.

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/11/09/Eric-Reid-Panthers-safety-Ben-Roethlisberger-Cam-Newton-David-DeCastro-Maurkice-Pouncey/stories/201811090084

did you see how DeCastro had his hand under Reids facemask and around his neck not one ref throw a flag on that I'd say he was a little pissed.

that was nothing but going for the head hit Reid was going after.

This line loves Ben. That showed it right there. And we should give the refs some props for allowing the protection. Props to them alot for that. Good looking out.

Flag yes... ejection no...no...no... let them play!

SteelerFreak58 wrote:

Flag yes... ejection no...no...no...  let them play!

So much this...

I really don't like Reid but this league is getting way too soft. Yes, he was late and I loved how Pouncey and DeCastro were teaming up for Ben, but it was not that Reid hit Ben when Ben was already on the ground for a couple of seconds. The ejection was unnecessary imo.

Stella Nation wrote:

SteelerFreak58 wrote:

Flag yes... ejection no...no...no...  let them play!

So much this...

I really don't like Reid but this league is getting way too soft. Yes, he was late and I loved how Pouncey and DeCastro were teaming up for Ben, but it was not that Reid hit Ben when Ben was already on the ground for a couple of seconds. The ejection was unnecessary imo.

I have mixed emotions about the ejection. It looked to me like he was head hunting. If you watch the replay Ben's head bounced off of the turf.
I agree the league is way too soft but that was a hit that could have caused a concussion.

In the game against the Ravens Weddle took a cheap shot on JU JU and was called for a late hit but since we had a holding call it was nullified. Since targeting carries an ejection I feel like his foul should have trumped our holding call.And how many times have we seen a non-call obvious penalty on the field end up being a fine later after the league office reviewed it. I haven't heard anything about Weddle or Burfict's hit on AB in the last match up for that matter getting fined.
Once again the inconsistency of the officials comes to light.

solardave wrote:

Stella Nation wrote:

SteelerFreak58 wrote:

Flag yes... ejection no...no...no...  let them play!

So much this...

I really don't like Reid but this league is getting way too soft. Yes, he was late and I loved how Pouncey and DeCastro were teaming up for Ben, but it was not that Reid hit Ben when Ben was already on the ground for a couple of seconds. The ejection was unnecessary imo.

I have mixed emotions about the ejection. It looked to me like he was head hunting. If you watch the replay Ben's head bounced off of the turf.
I agree the league is way too soft but that was a hit that could have caused a concussion.

In the game against the Ravens Weddle took a cheap shot on JU JU and was called for a late hit but since we had a holding call it was nullified. Since targeting carries an ejection I feel like his foul should have trumped our holding call.And how many times have we seen a non-call obvious penalty on the field end up being a fine later after the league office reviewed it. I haven't heard anything about Weddle or Burfict's hit on AB in the last match up for that matter getting fined.
Once again the inconsistency of the officials comes to light.  

I agree that an unnecessary roughness penalty shouldn't be nullified by a holding call. Maybe a 10 yard penalty in that case instead of a 15 yard one.
I don't know about Weddle, but he probably got a fine. Burfict certainly did, $112,000 for multiple hits that game.
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2801957-report-vontaze-burfict-fined-112k-for-antonio-brown-hit-more-vs-steelers

I read today that Reid got ejected because the game was already over and the refs didn't want things to escalate. That's a reason I understand and can agree with.