SNFL: Soft National Football League

The 1985 Bears style of play is no more in the new age soft NFL.

We've watched this season as the NFL has taken every twist and turn possible from player-coach beefs to players being fined for hitting each other to hard. No one predicted any of this at the beginning of the season. Who would've thought the last three undefeated teams in the league would be the Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Bears. You could make a case for the Steelers, but the Chiefs and Bears?

As a fan who watches and analyzes every Bears game, I understand how lucky they can be at times. Anyone else who follows the team remembers the years when safety Mike Brown would miraculously intercept passes at the end of almost every game to win the game. This would be a necessity as a result of the Bears having quarterback disasters and curses since Jim McMahon. Maybe the Chiefs actually have talent, but knowing the amount that I'm aware of  about the team, I'm sure talent is one thing that doesn't show up on Arrowhead Stadium's field unless it comes from the away team.

Two of the biggest stories this season has been the instability of the Minnesota Vikings and the issue of players being fined for hard hits. The fans of the Viking have called for coach Brad Childress' head after releasing Randy Moss after only four weeks of being with the team in which he had 13 catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns. Childress released Moss without any announcement to the Vikings front office or the team.

Childress was also rumored to have engaged in an altercation with wide receiver Percy Harvin this week, who some think was influenced by Moss' short stint with the Vikings. Unless the Vikings make a move to switch coaches in the middle of the season, which would only hurt the team, Childress will definitely be canned at the end of the season.

Another issue is the hits some players are taking that are knocking them into Looney Toon world. Steeler's linebacker James Harrison has been taxed with three fines totaling $100,000 this season off of hard hits alone. After the last fine, Harrison was quoted as saying, "The amount of money is becoming an issue. The fines that they issued to me, two of them weren't even called penalties. I don't even know what to say anymore."

Now, you might ask yourself why players are being fined for doing what is encouraged in a league where smash mouth football is glorified. I'm also questioning this movement by the NFL to "protect their players." Substantial financial protection isn't provided for the players in the NFL after they sustain a career-ending injury in a game, so the NFL has managed to find a way to cover their asses and minimize the damage players take during games. Some might be blind to it, but this is exactly what the league is doing and it's appalling.

Let these guys play the game they love without penalizing them for giving the fans what they want. They're aware of the dangers of playing professional football and continue to put their bodies on the line for the ridiculous amount being paid to them.

I'm a firm believer that these penalties and fines have placed the NFL in a much "softer" light. Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert and Lawrence Taylor would've been completely different players if these fines and penalties were enforced during their days. We can't completely change players from something they've been conditioned to do for years, so let's not try to change them at all.