Bucs QB Tom Brady Believes NFL Should Eliminate Hits to Wide Receivers’ Knees

While Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was frustrated following a dismal performance in Tampa Bay’s 9–0 loss to the Saints, the seven-time Super Bowl winner had a strong response for wide receivers taking hits to their knees.

Brady spoke on the Let's Go! podcast on SiriusXM NFL radio, saying the league should eliminate hits to the knees of defenseless wide receivers. His response comes after Bucs wideout Chris Goodwin suffered a torn ACL from a hit in Sunday's game, removing him from the starting lineup for the remainder of the season.

“I’ve seen that hit too many times where a defenseless pass catcher is in the process of catching the ball and he's hit by the defender,” Brady said on the podcast. “And a lot of defenders would say, ‘Well, we can't hit him in the head anymore.’ Well, the point is, you can't hit anybody in the head anymore. You can't hit anyone in the knees anymore except for receivers. Which doesn't make any sense to me. 

“You can't hit a defensive lineman in the knees, you can't hit a punter in the knees, you can't hit a quarterback in the knees, you can't hit a DB in the knees except for allowing hits on defenseless receivers. It needs to be addressed and really thought-out.”

Battling back from knee injuries can have long-term effects on careers, much like head injuries. However, Brady says he—along with wide receivers—would prefer “hits to the head” than to the knees.

“And I’m sure almost every pass catcher in the NFL would prefer a hit to the head over a hit to the knees,” Brady said. “I certainly would. I'd take that a million out of a million.”

Godwin finished the game with a team-high six passes for 49 yards after taking the shot from Saints defender P.J. Williams. In 14 games this season, Godwin has recorded a career-high 98 receptions (leads team) for 1,103 yards (leads team) and five touchdowns. 

The Buccaneers (10–4) current lead NFC South, occupy the third spot in the NFC playoff picture and will face the Panthers on Sunday.