Michael Strahan rips ‘bad’ roughing call against Minnesota on Lamar Jackson hit

There are at least one or two roughing the passer calls each NFL Sunday that could go either way, but a flag this weekend from the officials in Minneapolis was a bridge too far for Fox’s Michael Strahan.

In the first half of Sunday’s game between the Vikings and Baltimore Ravens, Vikings defender Dallas Turner was called for a questionable roughing foul after his body weight fell onto Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson on a sack. The play was a perfect encapsulation of the NFL’s continual rule changes to protect QBs, and Strahan’s response was a great rebuttal on behalf of defensive players.

“That was a bad call. You talk about getting to your side and getting your weight off a quarterback, it’s impossible in the flow of the game,” Strahan said during Fox’s halftime show. “He’s just trying to make a play. He’s going to hurt himself trying to avoid hurting somebody else. Any other person on that field if you get hit like that, they just move onto the next one.”

Michael Strahan tees off on Lamar Jackson roughing the passer call:

“At what point are we gonna realize quarterbacks play football too! We’re all playing football!”pic.twitter.com/ZdJX7Iv8Qn

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 9, 2025

Hits like the on Turner laid on Jackson can cause concussions or upper-body injuries for quarterbacks, but they are incredibly difficult to avoid. A physical runner like Jackson requires a big hit to bring down, but the current rules dictate that a pass-rusher effectively would need to disengage from a sack in order to avoid a flag.

It is an open secret that the goal for many recent rule changes regarding tackling are intended to protect the game’s biggest stars, the guys who line up under center. Sure, these plays reduce injuries, but many analysts over the years have argued that the NFL is giving quarterbacks a level of shelter from the built-in violence of football that no other player gets.

Strahan echoed these arguments on Sunday:

“At what point do we realize quarterbacks play football too? We’re all playing football.”