There’s no doubt Ndamukong Suh is a fantastic player, one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL. But he is also one of the dirties, and his intentional stomp on Aaron Rodgers in an attempt to injure him will have him suspended from the playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys. The Detroit Lions and the player are appealing the decision, but it’s just a formality, knowing the decision won’t get turned around.
And it shouldn’t be. The only one actually willing to defend Suh is teammate Dominic Raiola, the Lions’ center who served a one game suspension for doing the exact same thing a week earlier. He missed the loss against the Green Bay Packers but will be back to face the Cowboys in Arlington. His words of defense for Suh don’t really make an impression on anyone, as the images from clip of Suh’s double stomp on Rodgers leaves no room for any ambiguity.
He was getting pushed back, you know. There’s no way at that point in the game that he did something like that on purpose.
But there’s a history with Suh. He was suspended in 2011 for stomping on Evan Dietrich-Smith of the Packers, was fined $100,000 for a low block on John Sullivan of the Vikings, and has been fined numerous other times for roughing up quarterbacks: Andy Dalton, Jay Cutler, Matt Schaub, Jake Delhomme and Brandon Weeden. That’s a long list of victims with footage as proof for Raiola to claim there is ‘no way’ Suh did it on purpose.
With Suh probably out, it means the Lions are going to miss their two starting defensive tackles, as Nick Fairley’s injury will most likely keep him out of the game. Fairley hasn’t played or practiced since Week 8, which means the Lions likely would start C.J. Mosley and Andre Fluellen or Jason Jones at the defensive tackle spots.
Suh himself, a free agent at the end of this season, might have played his last game for the Lions if the Suspension is held. However, with everyone now suddenly claiming the Dallas Cowboys are going to walk all over the Lions, it might be the perfect opportunity for Detroit to take everyone by surprise, although their record on the road and overall their performances this season don’t call for a great amount of optimism.