Auburn's Nick Fairley Should Be Suspended For Repetitive, Helmet-First Cheap Shots

Here is Auburn’s Nick Fairley using his helmet as a weapon. He fights momentum to spear Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray in his plant leg, leaving him with a knee injury that, thankfully, does not appear to be career-altering. Perhaps you could attribute this to zeal in the moment, if it was the first dangerous late hit.

Here is Nick Fairley earlier in the game using his helmet to spear Aaron Murray in the back. He’s blocked away from the play, sees Murray release the ball and contorts himself to put in a brutal late hit.

Here is Nick Fairley accelerating after Aaron Murray releases the ball to deliver a helmet-first kill shot.

His repeated actions incite a brawl at the end of the game, which sees him unrepentantly parading around like a peacock and taunting Georgia as his coaches attempt to drag him off the field. Fairley is the same player who has made the suplex his signature move.

This isn’t poor tackling technique, reckless play or getting caught up in the moment. This is one player deliberately going out of his way to injure another player with his helmet, multiple times. If a vicious chop block cost Fairley a lucrative NFL career, it would only be karma. The SEC should suspend him for the rest of the conference season, at least.