Bell: A mean, clean approach to tackling for Tampa Bay's Dashon Goldson Jarrett Bell , USA TODAY Sports August 25, 2014
TAMPA – After 10 years, the signature dreadlocks that flopped out of the helmet of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' hard-hitting, Pro Bowl safety Dashon Goldson, are gone. The big haircut came right after New Year's Day, spur-of-the-moment following a season of turmoil including roughly $500,000 in fines and two suspensions (one rescinded on appeal) for illegal hits.Maybe there's a connection.When his fiancée, Ashley, saw his new look, Goldson said she cried."I'm getting older," explained Goldson, nearing 30. "I look at myself as an entrepreneur. I just wanted to clean it up."Now if Goldson can only clean up his image on the football field.Goldson is so notorious as a repeat offender of rules banning flagrant hits that he is among 21 players deemed by the NFL as "at-risk" for suspensions.Amid a litigious climate where the league is increasingly sensitive to the effects of head injuries and scrutiny of the NFL's efforts to address safety issues, Goldson realizes he is a marked man.Last season, Goldson was fined $30,000 for a Week 1 hit that caused Jets tight end Jeff Cumberland to suffer a concussion. He was originally suspended for a game, then on appeal docked $100,000 for a helmet-to-helmet hit on then-Saints running back Darren Sproles in Week 2.In Week 11, Goldson's blow on Falcons receiver Roddy White led to a two-game suspension, which was reduced on appeal to one game and a $265,000 game check. His season ended with a $60,000 fine for a Week 17 hit on Rams receiver Steadman Bailey.He has not only merely been warned. Goldson has also been targeted for a form of NFL intervention as Troy Vincent, the league's recently-promoted senior vice president of football operations, has reached out and in some cases met with many of the "at-risk" players with a preventative aim."They're trying to warn me, 'You are on the map. If you have another of these fines, you will be suspended for a few games,'" Goldson said. "I don't get a fresh start. That's kind of crazy. So if I make a hit, their argument is that I get a three-game suspension, just based on what I've done in the past."Goldson, who landed in Tampa in 2013 with a five-year, $41.25 million free agent deal, questions whether he should have drawn fines in previous cases and grumbles about the disparity of what a game check costs when compared to similar violations and punishment for players with lower salaries.Still, he acknowledges aggressiveness while patrolling the middle of the field – where defenseless receivers roam – is a key factor. Now his case may illustrate the effectiveness of NFL discipline, with Vincent and other NFL officials contending that with emphasis, players can change habits."What I need to do is simple: I've just got to wrap," Goldson said. "The most important thing is just to show that I'm trying to tackle and not just run through people. ...If I try to wrap a guy up with form tackling, I'd have a better chance of arguing my situation."Goldson hasn't had a face-to-face meeting yet with Vincent, but he recently visited with the NFL's new appeals officer, Derrick Brooks, after the Hall of Fame linebacker addressed the Bucs team as a whole.Brooks brings the defensive player's perspective to the appeals process, against the context of a widely-held perception among defensive players that rules are slanted in favor of the offense."I think you can continue to educate, show them clips and encourage them," Brooks told USA TODAY Sports. "We certainly want a safer game, but we also want them to avoid having money taken out of their pockets."Vincent praised Bucs defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier's efforts. Goldson said Frazier is prone to harp on tackling techniques during drills, quick to point out when they are bordering on the illegal."We're pulling for him to play all 16 games," Frazier told USA TODAY Sports.Goldson hasn't put himself in any additional hot water with the NFL after playing in two preseason games. However, others on the "at-risk" list, as Lions D-tackle Ndamukong Suh and Washington safety Brandon Merriweather were involved in controversial plays over the weekend that will surely draw a closer look, if not discipline, from the NFL.It's early, but perhaps Goldson has changed.At least he's convinced that he can thrive without the dreads. He was a bit nervous about how his helmet would fit without the dreadlocks, but it's snug enough."I definitely feel lighter," he added. "But a lot of people still don't recognize me. They probably don't know me without my hair."It would quite the bonus if the NFL doesn't know him anymore, either, as a flagrant head-hunter.
