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NFL Players Eviscerate ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. for Call to Ban Two-High Safety Defenses

The NFL draft analyst had an all-time take on how to insert more downfield passing back into the professional game.

Mike McDaniel

ESPN's Mel Kiper called for a ban of two-high safeties on Thursday's edition of 'Get Up'
ESPN's Mel Kiper called for a ban of two-high safeties on Thursday's edition of 'Get Up' / Screengrab courtesy of @GetUpESPN on X

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. made one of the most controversial football strategy takes in recent content history on Thursday morning's episode of Get Up, when he called for the NFL to ban two-high safety defenses.

The take has set the internet ablaze.

Here's what Kiper said, in part, on Thursday morning.

"Well, I grew up with the best of the National Football League, 60's, 70's, into the 80's," Kiper argued. "You're talking about deep shots. The go route, the nine route, the post. You're talking about Terry Bradshaw in the Super Bowl hitting John Stallworth. You see Leeroy Irving diving, right? Just off his fingers. There's the receiver. They laid it out there, right? Hit the receiver in stride. 65-yard touchdown. It's a beautiful thing to watch. That's what I want to see brought back to the National Football League. Okay? Checkdown kings. Bubble screen sensations. Boring football. Uh-uh. Game manager I get it. I want to see those deep shots. That's what the NFL was built on. I grew up with Johnny Unitas, Fran Tarkenton, Ken Stabler, Daryle Lamonica. You talk about quarterbacks—Joe Namath, Brett Favre when he was doing what he did. Herb Jones with the Baltimore Colts. You think about those quarterbacks who would thrown the ball down the field. I said what Bradshaw did with Stallworth and Swan. Roger Staubach. That's what I want to see brought back."

After continuing his rant, which included a reference to safeties playing so far back off the ball that it looked like there were only nine guys in the play on defense, Kiper made his most poignant point of them all.

"The NFL is being ruined by these two-high safeties."

Dissenting opinions on the matter have emerged all across the internet during the day on Thursday. The most popular takes have included calls for better offensive line play and running back play to bring the safeties closer to the line of scrimmage.

For the most part though, it's been straight up roasts of Kiper's all-time football take. Here are some of the best reactions from social media from both current NFL players and former to Kiper's call to ban two-high safety defenses.

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Mike McDaniel
MIKE MCDANIEL

Mike McDaniel is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where he has worked since January 2022. His work has been featured at InsideTheACC.com, SB Nation, FanSided and more. McDaniel hosts the Hokie Hangover Podcast, covering Virginia Tech athletics, as well as Basketball Conference: The ACC Football Podcast. Outside of work, he is a husband and father, and an avid golfer.

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