By now, we’re all aware that the NFL is a dangerous game, and things should be done to keep players as safe as possible.

However, the new roughing the passer rules do seem a bit extreme, and defensive linemen are clearly afraid to even run into the quarterback this year.

As you can see in the video below, a microphone captured Tampa Bay DL Gerald McCoy apologizing to Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger as he hit him on Monday night:

The hit wasn’t even that bad. Yes, Big Ben had already thrown the ball, but McCoy has a lot of momentum to try to stop, and he did the best he could.

Again, player safety is key, but there has to be a better way to protect quarterbacks than this.