The NFL has decided not to fine Treydan Stukes after his tackle that resulted in a serious injury to Kansas City Chiefs star Tyquan Thornton.
The Las Vegas Raiders safety chased down the Chiefs wide receiver and dragged him down from behind at the five-yard line during last week’s Sunday Night Football showdown.
But as Thornton jumped to his feet to celebrate, he realized his left ankle was pointing in the wrong direction in a gruesome and heartbreaking scene.
He was carted from the field with teammates in distress while many felt Stukes’ play was a textbook example of the hip-drop tackle the league has tried to outlaw to prevent injuries.
But NFL officials determined that was not the case after reviewing the incident, deciding against dishing out any punishment for causing the unfortunate injury.
The NFL says a hip-drop tackle ‘occurs when a defender wraps up a ball carrier and rotates or swivels his hips, unweighting himself and dropping onto ball carrier’s legs during the tackle.’
Tyquan Thornton was injured badly on a tackle by Treydan Stukes in the Chiefs-Raiders
Stukes has avoided an NFL fine despite some believing his tackle was an example of a hip-drop
However, after the new rule was introduced, NFL competition chairman Rick McKay clarified that the rule change doesn’t entirely ban the hip-drop tackle, only if the defender ‘rotates or swivels’ the hips of the ball carrier.
Officials reviewing a potential hip-drop tackle are instructed to look at if the defender ‘grabs the runner with both hands or wraps the runner with both arms’ and also ‘unweights himself by swiveling and dropping his hips and/or lower body, landing on and trapping the runner’s leg(s) at or below the knee.’
Many observers felt Stukes’ tackle met the criteria for a penalty, reacting in disbelief that he avoided a fine.
‘If this isn’t a hip drop then nobody should get fined for one all year,’ one fan reacted. Another said: ‘that is an absolutely blatant hip drop tackle.’
A further reaction read: ‘Not only should he have been fined, this should be an example video of a hip-drop tackle when emphasizing in the off season.’
Thornton is expected to miss 12-16 weeks after surgery on a fracture-dislocation of his left ankle, and he shared an upbeat response on social media this week.
‘You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step!’ Thornton wrote on Instagram. On X, Thornton wrote: ‘Love this team! 4-0 baby! I’ll be back stronger & better #ChiefsKingdom’
His teammate, Travis Kelce, addressed the awful injury, which came after a huge performance from the wideout, on his podcast this week.
Thornton suffered a gruesome ankle injury on the play but initially tried to stand up to celebrate
Thornton was carted off and is set to miss 12-16 weeks after undergoing ankle surgery
‘Everybody loves Tyquan,’ said Travis. ‘The guy just shows up every single day with his construction hat on ready to go to f–kin’ work, ready to put in the time and the effort that’s needed to have the success that he’s having.
‘And he’s finally starting to… you know, we’re 4-0, he’s playing unbelievably. He’s got Pat Mahomes’ trust. He’s got the coaches’ trust. And then to have something like this happen on such a big play in the game, it sucks.’
‘Obviously, positive news with the ankle and hopes that if we are in the playoffs, he’s healthy enough to get back out there. But at the same time, you just hate to see it happen to such a good guy.’
