T&R: Ray Lewis Seemingly Advocates For More Helmet-To-Helmet Hits
BOSTON (CBS) -- Ray Lewis is on a book tour (yes, he wrote a book), and that means Ray Lewis is talking a lot.
And when Ray Lewis talks a lot, Toucher & Rich get free material.
That was the case Wednesday morning, when the show played audio from Lewis' sit-down interview with PBS' Charlie Rose. As Rich Shertenlieb put it, "One of the reasons that [Rose] has done such a great job as an interviewer all these years is that he lets the interviewee speak. He poses a simple question and lets them go on, doesn't try to interrupt them, gives them all the room that they need. And do you know what that means for Ray Lewis? Trouble."
In the interview, Rose asked Lewis if he was concerned about concussions in football. Quite the opposite, said Lewis.
"I think what I am concerned about is they're taking the game and they're diluting the game because they want to protect their claims. But if you leave the game alone, like always, the game will take care of itself," Lewis said.
Rose then asked the obvious question: How will the game take care of itself?
"One of the biggest things right now that's disgusting to me -- disgusting -- in college football is that now, they've created a term that's called 'targeting,' saying if a player launches his head -- which is the first thing on your body, it's what you lead with -- you launch your head into someone and you collide with their helmet, that's targeting. And they're kicking babies out of games. But a referee makes a mistake and they never are punished."
Lewis continued: "See, so, what is the lesson that we're being taught? That if you make a mistake that the rules you guys make -- y'all made these rules! That's why we put on helmets. That's why we got two chinstraps. That's why we got shoulder pads. You've got people at the top of these food chains and sitting there saying, and the reason why they really don't care, because of the herds are so great."
There was more.
"The herds of athletes are so great, they don't care. It's on to the next one, and it's on to the next one, and it's on to the next one. But they don't really, the effect of your family?" Lewis said. "If [the NFL] really did [care], we wouldn't be the only ones that you take away from. But the only ones that are penalized, but the only ones that are suspended [are players]."
Toucher & Rich enjoyed the audio immensely, and had some fun with it, as usual. Listen below: