The Bengals defense with PacMan and Burfict in their primes was the only defense I ever saw the Steelers genuinely scared of.
But to the original question, it's true that the game has changed, now heavily favored to offense, so that's obviously changed things. But I believe our overall sentiment as a society has changed as well. I remember as a kid, watching these guys get absolutely destroyed. Knocked out on the field. "Carry him off with a stretcher! Get em a body bag! Woooo!"
Then there was that Shazier hit that paralyzed him for a time. After what he did to Gio Bernard, and after paying zero consequences for it, suffice it to say I was not a Shazier fan. But I felt horrible for him, just laying there motionless on the field. I realized at that moment that not only something within me had changed at some point between childhood and then, but that something had changed with many other people as well. More of an empathy for these guys wrecking their brains and bodies.
tl;dr Rules and Empathy.
"Lemonade requires a significant amount of sugar. Otherwise, you've just made lemon juice."
Chip R (11-19-2021)
No Name Defense, Wasn't that the Dolphins of the early 70's?
Reds Fan Since 1971
Assembly Hall (11-19-2021),Chip R (11-19-2021)
cumberlandreds (11-19-2021)
GAC (11-21-2021)
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