The Pittsburgh Steelers are oftentimes the reason for NFL rule changes. On Ryan Clark's podcast Pivot, James Harrison joined and recalled the game in 2010 that got James Harrison fined big money.
Whether it was the Mel Blount Rule of 1978 or the Hines Ward Rule of 2009, the Steelers changed the game in multiple ways. In the late 2000s into the 2010s, Pittsburgh was becoming the poster boy of the Player Safety Initiative. Each week, the Steelers' physicality often would tear teams down.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison on May 21, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
In 2010, the Cleveland Browns visited the Pittsburgh Steelers in week six. Among the headlines entering the game was Roethlisberger 's return from suspension. However, it was the post-game headlines that took over the media and ultimately the game of football.
Clark on the podcast chuckled and asked Harrison, "You remember when Coach Tomlin blamed me for your fines that time?"
Harrison, gleaming up, recalled Clark's interesting dance celebration–calling it an "Indian dance." "That's how I got fined!" Harrison exclaimed.
Clark described Harrison as getting two knockouts in that game.
"Cribbs killed us one year with the wildcat. So they run wildcat away from Deebo," Clark described, following it with an emphatic thump noise . "He's done. It's a wrap. If he was playing in today's ball he don't play for a month."
The hit knocked Cribbs out cold and out of the game. It wasn't the highlight hit of the game, however.
"So then [wide receiver Mohamed] Massaquoi, he runs a little crosser … [quarterback Colt] McCoy just set him up! When Deebo hit him … he shut his lights off first, but not his body. So his body was still going through the motions," Clark describes "So [Massaquoi] just fell to his knees."
Clark would then describe his reaction that forced Tomlin to address in the next meeting as a "can't do that" moment.
Pittsburgh Steelers free safety Ryan Clark (25) sits on the bench during the second half of an NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2013. The Steelers won 20-7. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
"I started spinning around in a circle!" Clark recalls. Harrison interjects and emphasizes "kicking his legs and everything!"
Both Harrison and Clark received a FedEx slip in their locker that week with Clark receiving a $40K fine and Harrison's headline a $75K fine.
The game's big hits no doubt sparked the Player Safety Initiative . A year later, Harrison would become the first player to be suspended over an in-play action when he hit Colt McCoy after he threw the ball away.
Needless to say, the game has changed a lot since then.
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