Watch: European League Of Football Player Is On Receiving End Of Brutal Hair-Pulling Tackle
Even if the NFL isn't playing a game on European soil on a given week, the continent still gets its weekly dose of football — the real, American kind — thanks to the European League of Football, or ELF.
Yes, ELF.
And just like here in the States, it sometimes feels like no one knows the rules and it's up to fans on social media to suss out what is and isn't legal.
One tackle that happened this week during a game between the Frankfurt Galaxy and the Rheim Fire (NFL Europa represent!) had fans debating whether or not it was legal (even though it absolutely was).
It happened during a playoff semi-final game over the weekend. On 2nd and five early in the 3rd quarter with Frankfurt up 16-14, Rheim handed the ball to running back Glen Toonga.
Galaxy linebacker Weil Nasri did his job in taking Toonga to the turf, only he did it by grabbing the running back's hair and doing some kind of hammer throw-like move to bring him down at the 21-yard line.
Perfectly Legal In The Game Of Football, If Not Perfectly Ethical
As most of you probably know, that's legal. It's just that we don't always see that done so violently.
This always made me wonder why so many offensive players go with the long hair. Wouldn't it be best to not give opponents anything that might help them bring you down? Sure the long hair looks cool, but sometimes you've got to make these kinds of decisions based on what they can do for you from a competitive standpoint.
Like, I'm sure there are plenty of swimmers and triathletes who would prefer to not have to shave their legs, but they've got to cut down on drag if they want to hit a PR.
While most fans accepted the reality that this play was legal, others were caught up in the ethics of this sort of thing.
So ethical, perhaps not, but legal? Absolutely.
Rehim went on to win the game 42-23 and will face Stuttgart Sirger in the European League of Football championship this weekend.
Follow on X: @Matt_Reigle