Jeff Fisher Responds to Mike Zimmer, Rodney Harrison Comments About Rams | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
William Harris Responding to criticism from Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer and NBC analyst and former safety Rodney Harrison, St. Louis Rams head coach Jeff Fisher fired back at those who questioned Rams cornerback Lamarcus Joyner's hit on Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater during Minnesota's 21-18 win Sunday.
USA Today's Tom Pelissero provided Fisher's full response to Harrison:
Tom Pelissero @TomPelisseroGonna guess Jeff Fisher didn't know these numbers off the top of his head.
"I wasn't surprised because it happened to me in 2006," Harrison said during NBC's Football Night in America (via Mike Foss of For the Win). "Bobby Wade, wide receiver, came and chopped my knees, tore my knee up. I'm laying on the ground looking at Jeff Fisher, and he is smiling and laughing, so this is typical of a Jeff Fisher team."
Harrison clarified his stance further on KJR Radio on Tuesday, per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio:
The bottom line is this, all I did was I spoke on an experience that I had. Bobby [Wade] came and hit me on my knee, I looked up to the sideline and those guys were laughing and joking. You don't laugh and joke at anybody's injuries because it can happen to any football player at any point in time. That's what I saw and I just spoke about it. He took things personally and made it what it was and then he started naming all these personal fouls and penalties and stuff like that. Basically saying, 'Look at the source.' Well, look at the source: A two-time Super Bowl Champion, a guy that played in four Super Bowls, a guy that had a heck of a career, a guy that loves the game. And did I play on the edge? Yes, I did play on the edge. But if you're calling me dirty and you assume that I am a dirty player. . . . Well, if I am a dirty player then guess what, I should know what a dirty hit is. That's why I called it what it was. It was a cheap shot, it was a dirty shot, and I think everybody else that saw that tape saw that.
It's a somewhat contradictory sentiment from Harrison, who has complained about the league being "soft" in the past. "It's not my fault if the guy curls up like a little girl because he doesn't want to get hit," he said in a 2009 interview on Sirius satellite radio (via Sean Leahy of USA Today). "Football now is turning into a soft, pansy sport."
Harrison wasn't the only person to take umbrage. Zimmer didn't mince words when discussing his feelings toward the Rams coaching staff:
Fisher also responded to Zimmer's critique, per Florio:
I think a good a lesson to be learned from this is control your emotions immediately after the game and go back and look at the tape before you jump to conclusions. Mike's and my handshake was very short. He didn't say a word. I went out to congratulate him. I was going to ask him how his quarterback was and congratulate him on the win, and he was gone. I understand that, but you also need to control your emotions after a game and go look at the tape and then adjust accordingly. Again, I don't know who they play this week. I don't care, but we've moved on. We're on to Chicago.
The hit in question came in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater was in the process of sliding when Joyner hit the signal-caller in the head with his forearm (see the 0:53 mark):
Bridgewater exited the game after suffering a concussion, and his status for Sunday's matchup against the Oakland Raiders remains in question. According to ESPN.com's Ben Goessling, the second-year star passed the first test in the NFL's concussion protocol.
ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert wrote Monday that Joyner will likely receive a fine from the league but avoid a suspension since he doesn't have a track record of similar plays.