Let me start by stating, I'm not a Dallas fan. It's hard to root for a team where the owner works to bring focus to himself and not his team. It's his money, so he can do what he wants, but his ego has kept his 'Boyz out of the big game for a very long time.
It was amazing but it's a catch that never should have happened. Like many top tier tight ends in the NFL, George Kittle is a difference maker. When it counts, he comes through. He frustrates even the best defenses in the league and continues to provide a stable, consistent presence in the middle of the field for any QB who steps under center for San Francisco. He's money. He just shouldn't have been given the chance to make that spectacular, juggling catch on Sunday. Deep respect for the concentration and skill it took to bring that ball in, but a simple act could have prevented it. A basic skill taught at the earliest level of the sport and reinforced every year of someone's football playing life. Tackling. Closing with the offensive player, sinking the hips, keeping your eyes up and firing through while bringing your arms with an uppercut motion and driving through the ball carrier while taking him to the ground. Tackling. A lost art in the NFL. Those that practice it do it very, very well. They would have disrupted George Kittle with a legal tackle, and he would never have had a chance to secure that catch.
Instead, Trevon Diggs, as good as a player as he is, did something that's driven me crazy for many years now. He tried to 'blow him up'. Launched into a shoulder first, heat seeking human missile with the intent to not actually tackle George Kittle but instead to blow him up. We've all seen these kinds of 'tackles' over and over again highlighted on every broadcast. They make us cringe at the destructive outcome, and cheer loudly when it's our defender laying the 'wood' on someone. They make highlight reels. What would the game be without them?
I've got some thoughts on what a game would be without them. For one, we'd see more tackles. Actual, real tackles. The number of times I've seen a ball carrier maneuver around a defender who drops his eyes, lowers his shoulder and fires into space would take many pages to write up. It drives me insane to watch a running back get the edge, running down the sideline, only to be dead to rights and bang...juke back inside because the defender decided it'd be cooler to "blow him up" into the bench vs. actually breakdown and tackle the runner. Absolutely insane. You've trained all your life to be a great tackler and decide, now that you've 'made it', to leave all that behind and just launch into space hoping to knock the guy down and maybe even out? What's rule number 1 of tackling? See the target, hit the target. Eyes up. You can't tackle what you can't see. It's just dumb luck once you drop your eyes. Granted, many get lucky, and we the fans get treated to some truly body shocking hits.
That brings me to second reason I can't stand these kinds of 'tackles'. They are dangerous. The sport of football is dangerous already. The risks are high, especially when we're talking grown men who work all year, every year at being the best athlete they can be. I coach younger kids and if I see one of my kids do something like this, I lose it. Do not, ever, turn yourself in a missile, that losses track of your target and takes your arms out of the equation with the hopes of landing the 'big hit'. Do it right or ride the bench until you figure it out. The risk to the tackler, as well as the ball carrier, goes up, in my opinion, when you start tackling like this. One of these days I'm going to comb through instances of concussions that happen due to being crushed by a "missile hit". I bet I find that many of the 'tackles' were actually these "missile hits". I want to see football, my favorite sport, gain ground with parents and athletes alike. I want it to continue to become safer. Taking these types of hits out of the sport is, in my opinion, a key step in mitigating some of the risk that inherently exists. Great, good form tackles bring plenty of excitement to the sport on their own.
Back to the George Kittle play. I've replayed the catch dozens of times now. Slowed it down. Seen how amazing Kittles concentration was to make it happen. I also watched Trevon Diggs fly through the air in front of Kittle, with his eyes away from the play, his shoulder tucked in tight, arms nowhere involved, as he soars just inches from Georges hands.
The very same hands, that milliseconds later secured the ball and made history. Imagine, just for the second, if Trevon Diggs had instead kept his eyes up and went to actually tackle George Kittle. Tackle him, not blow him up. There is a very, very good chance that Diggs arms, in the process of wrapping up Kittle, get in the way of securing the ball. The ball lands harmlessly to the turf and we, the fans, are robbed of a catch that will find a nickname and be part of NFL playoff lore forevermore. All it would have taken was for a very good player doing something he's been taught for as long as he's played football. Tackle the guy.
Of course, we wouldn't have Stephen A. Smiths post game reaction. A camera might not have gotten into a shoving match with a coach. The Cowboys might have had a shot. Instead, George Kittles story continues to be written and his legacy grows. As a fan of another NFC West team, I hate Kittle and have mad respect for him at the same time. He just should have never had a chance to make that catch.