On the Week 6 Recap edition of the Around The NFL Podcast, we suggested the NFL should discipline Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict for attempting to injure Carolina Panthers stars Cam Newton and Greg Olsen by twisting their ankles at the end of separate plays in Sunday's 37-37 tie.
Addressing the issue on Monday, Olsen called on the league to suspend Burfict for his actions.
"I think instances like that," Olsen said, via Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review, "that are so clearly premeditated that he had in his mind if those opportunities, that he was going to try to attack not only guys' legs, but guys who were coming off ankle problems specifically, there's no room for it."
Olsen was referencing Newton's surgically repaired ankle that had prevented the quarterback from scrambling effectively prior to Sunday's game.
"I think the punishment needs to go beyond a fine," Olsen continued. "Guys like that don't learn from that stuff. He's been fined a hundred times for head hunting, and he did it to Kelvin (Benjamin) again. You watch the film, that's just what he is."
Olsen added that the NFL will have to "start putting guys out for weeks" if they truly care about player safety.
NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported Monday night, via a league source, that the NFL will look into Olsen's claims.
The tight end wasn't alone in his outrage over Burfict's extracurricular activities. Kicker Graham Gano took to Twitter to express his feelings:
Burfict has a track record of on-field antics going back to his Arizona State days. He plays like a throwback to the 1950s. The difference is high-definition instant replays and social media weren't around to capture and disseminate dirty tactics when roughnecks like Hardy Brown, Ed Sprinkle and the Black-Hat Brigade were shattering jaws and prematurely ending careers.
Cardinals coach Bruce Arians called Julius Thomas' Week 5 chop block on Calais Campbell the dirtiest play he's seen in 37 years. Burfict's antics can be viewed as even dirtier, since the primary purpose is to injure the player rather than make a play.
Burfict was not flagged for either ankle twist. That won't stop Panthers coach Ron Rivera from sending film of the two plays to the league office for review.
Given Burfict's history and the heightened reaction out of Charlotte, we suspect we haven't heard the last of this issue.
We recap all the Week 6 action on a jaunty edition of the "Around The NFL Podcast." Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.
