This targeting call on Nate Gerry is a good example. If you look at the play in real time, what is a defender to do? The WR is airborne and twisting, Gerry is trying to hit the guy to stop the ball from being caught, how can Gerry predict where the WR's head will be when he starts his process for hitting the guy. You can't really stop once you have started. You HAVE to launch! That is how you separate a receiver from the ball.
The whole idea is preposterous in the game of football. Will the forces, angles, and speed of the game, people can't avoid hitting the head unless they just stop trying to hit people hard. And if that is your ultimate goal, to stop hard hitting, then the game ruined. You can't play effective defense if you can't try and hit the offense hard, especially the WR. Letting the ball be caught and then executing controlled safe tackling makes the defense ineffectual.
They say the rule is for safety, but notice it only goes against the defense. No one penalizes a RB for lowering his head and hitting players. No one calls helmet to helmet contact between lineman in the trenches on the goaline plays. Maybe some of it is for safety, but I think most of it is to turn the game into a lower contact higher scoring game for ratings.
