The best name in the NFL, Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, was told by the league yesterday that he would be suspended one game - this weekend's Wild Card playoff matchup against the Dallas Cowboys - because he stepped on, and subsequently lingered on, the ankle of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Suh's potential loss would be truly devastating for a Lions defense preparing to face DeMarco Murray and the best running game in the NFL.
As it turns out, Lions fans may not need to worry, as the suspension - handed down by league disciplinarian Merton Hanks - could very well be overturned, according to Peter King of Sports Illustrated.
Suh's appeal of the ruling will take place Tuesday, with a decision expected to come from hearing officer Ted Cottrell later that night.
"But the entire case does have shades of gray to it, as I said on the NBC pregame show Sunday night," writes King. "And it wouldn't surprise me if Cottrell ruled for Suh and allowed him to play Sunday."
Cottrell has overturned Hanks' rulings before and could very well do the same in this instance.
"Two years ago, he overruled Hanks and reinstated Baltimore safety Ed Reed after Reed was suspended for one game by the league following his third violation in three seasons of the rule against helmet-to-helmet hits on defenseless receivers," King writes.
In the NFL's statement on Suh's suspension issued Monday, it made no mention of Suh's lengthy prior history of league discipline, potentially meaning they viewed this as a singular case, egregious enough to stand on its own.
But, were a third-party to determine the sanction unnecessary and Suh deemed able to play, the NFL may not be overly disappointed because implementing the discipline in the first place already sent the clear and direct message about violent behavior they were hoping to communicate.
