Dolphins' Alonso Says Hit On Flacco Unavoidable: 'He Slid Too Late'
BALTIMORE (WJZ/AP) -- Ravens nation is up in arms this morning, the day after Joe Flacco was stopped short during one of his best performances of the season after a hit from Miami Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso.
Flacco was sliding at the end of an impromptu run near the end of the second quarter when Alonso hit him high. Flacco's helmet flew off his head, and the 10-year quarterback appeared wobbly as he struggled to his feet.
"Joe had a concussion and a cut ear," coach John Harbaugh said. "They were stitching it up without any anesthesia, so he's a tough dude. That's as much as I know."
The Ravens, now 4-4 after beating the Dolphins 40-0 now get an extended break before returning to action on Nov. 5 against the Tennessee Titans.
So fans will have a long time to discuss the question on many minds -- why wasn't Alonso punished for that hit beyond being called for unnecessary roughness?
He defended himself in a post-game interview, seeming to blame it on Flacco's poor timing.
When asked if he could have avoided the hit, he said "no way."
"That's the target," he went on to say. "When a guy slides, and his target is very small, I just think it's like a second late, which is why I hit him, to be honest with you. At first I was anticipating him – I thought he was going to slide. And then, I had to hit him, because he slid too late. It was bang-bang. I don't know what else I could have done... I really think if he would have slid a second sooner I would have pulled off. But it was so close, that I had to hit him."
WJZ's Mark Viviano points out that, just last week, Vikings safety Andrew Sendejo was issued a one-game suspension after his hit on Mike Wallace that caused a concussion. Wallace was out of the Thursday game as a result.
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