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VIDEO: Austin Collie gets knocked out by helmet-to-helmet hit

By ArtieFufkin

(Photo: Matt Detrich / The Star)

Another scary moment today in Philadelphia, when Colts WR Austin Collie was knocked unconscious by S Kurt Coleman during the 2nd quarter of the Eagles 26-24 win. After the play, Collie lay motionless on the turf for several minutes before being immobilized and carted off the field. According to initial reports, Collie suffered a concussion, but after the game he was “alert, sitting up and has movement’’.

Once again, it was a bang-bang play, and Collie looked to be making a move with the ball before he was hit by both Coleman and S Quintin Mikell. Mikell was flagged for hitting a defenseless receiver, but on the replays you can see that he delivers a shoulder-to-shoulder hit as Coleman comes in from the other direction. As the target moves, Colman’s helmet strikes Collie’s cleanly, and you can see that Collie is out before he hits the ground:

The play will undoubtedly be scrutinized by the NFL, and is sure to re-ignite the discussion about violent hits in the game. But from where we sit, it looks like a clean play by the Colts defenders, with a very unfortunate result.

Whether you agree with it or not, this is the “new NFL”, and this is exactly the type of helmet-to-helmet collision the league is trying to remove from the game. So regardless of his intention on the play, Coleman can expect a call from Mr. Goodell with at least a fine – if not a suspension – as punishment. And you can almost certainly expect Goodell to make an example of Coleman here … especially since he’s not a big-name player for the league.