Dante Wesley Hit on Clifton Smith Yields 1-Game Suspension

Carolina Panthers defensive back Dante Wesley has been suspended one game for a cheap shot on Buccaneers return man Clifton Smith, the NFL announced on Monday.

The brutal hit came when Smith was attempting to return a punt and Wesley was the gunner on the coverage team. As Smith was getting set up to field the punt, Wesley launched himself into Smith, who was looking up at the ball and never saw the hit coming.

While Smith lay motionless on the ground, a fight broke out between the Buccaneers and Panthers. Eventually order was restored, Smith walked off the field, and Wesley was penalized 15 yards and ejected from the game.

The NFL's full statement:

Defensive back Dante Wesley of the Carolina Panthers has been suspended without pay for one game by NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations Ray Anderson for a flagrant violation of player safety rules. Specifically, on a punt coverage play on Sunday, Wesley left his feet, launched himself and made shoulder and forearm contact with the neck and head area of Tampa Bay punt returner Clifton Smith, who had not caught or touched the ball and was in a defenseless posture.

The suspension will sideline Wesley for the Panthers' game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, October 25.

In a letter to Wesley, Anderson wrote: "The playing rules (Rule 10, Section 1, Article 1) specifically provide that a member of the kicking team is prohibited from interfering with a receiver attempting to catch an airborne kick. The prohibited contact in this case went well beyond simply interfering with the receiver. Instead, by striking your defenseless opponent in the head and neck area, you committed an unnecessary and unnecessarily dangerous act that is specifically prohibited by the rules."

Anderson added: "Your actions are of particular concern in light of the emphasis that our office has placed on developing and enforcing rules designed to protect players from injury, including head and neck injuries. The safety of our players is paramount to all of us in the NFL."

There was no word on whether Wesley will be fined in addition to losing his weekly paycheck.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 7)

10-19-2009 @ 6:01PM

jamie said...

are you friggin kidding me? one game suspension? are the people employed by the nfl drug tested? what in the world will they do when wesley paralyzes or breaks someone's neck with this kind of play? i know i shouldn't have expected anything other but this pissy decision since they allow convicted felons to continue to play the game. guess they will keep their mouths shut while the whole sport becomes nothing but who can hurt or maim someone.

10-19-2009 @ 6:45PM

Tim said...

How many games do you think would be fair and why? Instead of just saying the decision is stupid, please let us know how the NFL should have handled this.

One game on top of being ejected seems perfectly fair to me. Remember, he was suspended for 1/16 of the season. If you compare it to other sports, it would be a 10 game suspension in baseball and 5 games in hockey or basketball. One game is more likely to mean the difference of making or not making the playoffs in the NFL. Being suspended for one game is a big deal in the NFL. This is a physical game and it takes a lot to be suspended in the NFL for onfield actions. The last person I can remember getting suspended, for his onfield actions, was Cowboys DB Roy Williams for too many horse collar penalties. That suspension happened 2 years ago. Flozell Adams only got a warning, after 3 consecutive weeks of tripping penalties, that he could be suspended if his actions continue.

10-20-2009 @ 7:44AM

Nicky27 said...

I guess your "One Of Those People" who do not believe in giving people a second chance. "They let convicted Fellons play!" Please. Give me a break. So you have never Done anything wrong in your life? NEVER? Never? I doubt it! I garentee you have. So Stop shooting your mouth off about subjects you have no idea how to back up with words other than sounding like a Idiot! Everyone should get a second Chance, unless you take a life. That is not call Hypocrisy either, its called Morality, something you have none of. The guy who did put that hit on the Tampa guy probably desirves a swifter penality, but that is not for you nor i nor anyone else to decide. Its up to the NFl, so go back to KFC and leave the officiating to the more Qualified! Thanks..

10-20-2009 @ 11:33AM

rwdiddy1 said...

It was a good hit. If you can't stand the heat, stay off the gridiron.....

10-20-2009 @ 1:52PM

Rusty said...

I would actually think this kid needs to face felony assault charges in court.

10-20-2009 @ 3:19PM

htc6600 said...

Right on jamie.

10-19-2009 @ 6:04PM

are you kidding me? are the people making these crappy decisions being drug tested? this is an INSULT to the man suffering from the concussion. should not surprise me that the nfl decided to take such a wimpy line since they allow convicted felons to play. all this shows is that the nfl is NOT interested in keeping the players safe and making the players follow any rules. why do they even have rules? i guess next week will be very interesting since any player can hit any player (with or without the ball) and nothing will happen to them.

10-19-2009 @ 6:17PM

chilly16 said...

No one is kidding you & the nfl drug tests their employees. hope that helps !

10-19-2009 @ 9:14PM

Rose said...

he was ejected from yesterdays game plus he is suspended for the next game so actually he was suspended for two games. what should they do - suspend him for the rest of the year. they may just want to give him a chance to turn himself around - if he commits the act again he may not need to worry about the NFL office for his team will surely cut him from the team.

I only wish Tampa would have won yesterday though they gave it everything they had and came pretty darn close.

10-20-2009 @ 8:26AM

Michael said...

To Nicky, second chances for convicted felons means you back out on the street. It doesn't mean you get to be back on tv, playing a game getting paid for it and being role models for smaller children who look up to these guys. Sure I think they should have given him a fine on top of things. They don't really care about the game all that much anymore, it's about the payday for them. But like you said, don't talk about stuff you have no idea about. And that is coming from someone who did get a second chance you jackass.

10-19-2009 @ 6:13PM

mdeson said...

What a bunch of crap the NFL front office is full of ---- for this blown call what happen to zero tolerance. I would think this is worse than a player shooting himself in the leg. One of these days you will see retaliation against players if that's all its going to be. Look out the Bucs will be gunning for you when we meet up again.

10-19-2009 @ 8:51PM

isuamlmbf said...

Blown call?? Flag thrown, team penalized, player ejected.
More than what Plaxico got for shooting himself. Plaxico got no suspention! He is eligiblke to return at the end of his prison sentence. Get you facts correct before making comments that do nothing but make you look stupid. You were probably one of the people dressed up like an empty seat in Ray Jay!!

10-20-2009 @ 11:42AM

Trish the Dish said...

What should be done? He should be suspended for half the reg season. This way people use common sense when making a decision between right and wrong. If he was suspended for more time then it will actually affect him as a player (his stats) amongst other things. People shouldn't be able to pull stunts like this and wait for the consiquences to be decided. Personal responsibility needs to put back in effect.

And no, to another question. The question was "shouldn't everyone get a second chance". Hell no! These are public representatives of there team, profession, and themselves. People need to pay much steeper prices for there horrible mistakes. Personal responsibility does not exsist and it's required for a respectable community. The NFL displays lack of responsiblity, from the bottom up!

10-19-2009 @ 7:38PM

Steve said...

THIS IS A JOKE

10-19-2009 @ 7:26PM

screamneagle96 said...

Im a bucs fan and it was a stupid hit, i think ejection and a one game suspension is fair, but what if smith sustained a really big injury, would it call for more suspension, possibly more fines? I enjoy big hits, but this type of activity is just stupid.
GO BUCS!

10-20-2009 @ 2:00PM

jrh120167 said...

You just made the smartest comment on this page. Thank you for thinking clearly.

10-19-2009 @ 8:03PM

You know if he didn't want to get hit he should have called for a fair catch. That is why that rule is in place. As for the hit BEAUTIFUL should have been harder. I am tired of seeing these overpaid *ssholes get paid for playing flag football. Assult? Attempted murder? Are you people kidding me? They get paid in access of 50x the amount of are armed forces and civil service people who risk there life every day. Thats what they get paid for, and to say that he should be banned for life. Are you kidding me? It is turning into a pee-wee sport anymore anyways and everyone in this post saying he needs to be fined and suspended are the reason why this game is being torn apart with all the "Oh my god he will get hurt" bull*hit. They signed up to play with the big boys, LET THEM!!!!!!!

10-19-2009 @ 8:32PM

Hi there said...

Michael I think you are missing something.....A brain. Fair catch or no fair catch.....you cannot hit a player before he catches the ball. Dante Wesley left his feet to put the hit on a defenseless player, also a rule. Michael try this so you can get a sense of what happened. Ask the guy at work that hates you to kick you in the nuts while you watch an airplane flew over head.

10-19-2009 @ 8:42PM

Bob said...

Hey moron Michael, whether he calls for a fair catch or not, he still has to be allowed to make the catch in the first place. No one can hit the receiver until he touches the ball, a rule that's been in place for decades, idiot. Another gang-bangin', cheap-shot thug who has no concept of sportsmanship or integrity.