It comes with the territory.

"In the game, you're not saying, 'Oh, I'm not going to hurt this guy or I'm not going to hit him like this'," Cribbs said. "He's like a heat-seeking missile. I have the football and he's targeting on me. He's not like, 'I've got to hit him properly, let me aim at his legs.' He's just trying to get me down any means possible. And I would do the same. I came at people like that as well, heat-seeking missiles. Cribbs believes he had an impact on Harrison's decision to return to the field after a one-day absence to consider his future.

"I think it meant a lot for him to hear me tell him, 'Hey man, go out there and play and ball out.' And I told him as well, 'Remember, we play ya'll again, so don't think I forgot. We're boys off the field, but when we step on that field, I don't know you, dog'."

Cribbs said he didn't suffer any memory loss from the Harrison hit, which came after the Browns' Pro Bowler took off on a running play out of the WildDawg formation. As he neared the line of scrimmage, Cribbs was being wrapped up by Pittsburgh's LaMarr Woodley when Harrison came flying in from the side.

The league said the shot was legal -- a claim the Browns dispute -- and Cribbs found it within reasonable limits as well.

"I had the ball and was going down and he came in to clean me up," Cribbs said. "It's his job to try to put me out of the game. If I was a linebacker, you try to knock guys out. That's what linebackers try to do for the most part. You have to follow the rules, but that's their job."

Harrison was branded a villain by Cleveland fans, and he became the poster child this week for the league's attempt to reduce head injuries.

Browns center Alex Mack said Harrison was using his helmet the entire game -- and not just on the publicized hits that rocked Cribbs and Massaquoi.

"If you watch the game film, [Harrison] was doing that to everyone on every play," Mack told The Associated Press. "People would be on the ground and he would try to spear them. There's a play on film where [running back] Peyton Hillis is tackled and he comes up and spears him. It's like you're being cheap, you're being dirty."

Cribbs said he respects Mack's opinion, but that if Harrison wore an orange helmet and not the Steelers' black and gold, the perception would be different.

"If [Harrison] played for our team we'd be applauding his efforts," Cribbs said. "I'm just trying to be honest. If he were on our team we'd be rallying behind him, just like his team is doing for him. He plays to knock people out. Wouldn't you want a linebacker like that on your team?"Cribbs won't change his game because of the league's stricter stance on helmet hits. He believes last weekend's rash of hard knocks around the league was "a fluke." He appreciates what's being done to protect players' safety, but wonders if the league hasn't gone too far, too quickly.

"They're making the right strides in trying to protect players but at the same time, the NFL's walking a fine line between just changing the game and changing players' abilities," he said. "This is the NFL. Everybody can't play and everybody's not able to play. You have to be able to take these hits and get up. That's why we get paid the way we do. It's a tough sport."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5714223

@spunkonmyback-dpoy said:

Okay Dr. can you help me with this feeling of Deja Vu i'm having?

@speedyd900rr said:

Pointing out most of the players in the NFL disagree with what this board thinks is whining? I will make 3 times as much money as you if I open up a school in Cleveland.

@speedyd900rr said:

Pointing out most of the players in the NFL disagree with what this board thinks is whining? I would make 3 times as much money as you if I open up a school in Cleveland.

@gafreleets said:

or i'm not gay and you calling me gay shows that you know i'm not or else it wouldn't be an insult.

i won't tell you either way, i'll just let your brain try and comprehend that catch 22 and hopefully you'll stroke out.

:unsure:

@hoorta said:

The League office Video to the Teams

Again, you people who obvious have no ability in reading comprehension, it's not me saying it, it's the NFL players. It's your own players. Don't think by ignoring this fact it will go away.

Again, you people who obvious have no ability in reading comprehension, neither me nor none of the are supporting cheap head shots. Goodell threats to suspend players for any helmet-to-helmet contact. As long as the league remains tackle football helmet-to-helmet contact will happen. Players don't want to be suspended for playing tackle football.

I don't know if you guys are doing this on purpose or honestly don't understand, but what you guys are trying to criticize me for isn't even my point of view. I've always been against cheap head shots on defenseless receivers. What Goodell wants to do goes far behind just punishing those kind of hits. Both me and players all over the NFl don't want those types of plays punished.

Accusing me of wanting all head shots legal or wanting intenional head hunting just makes you guys look stupid because I've never said anything like that.

It's the player's game. They are the ones who are effected by the rules. Why do you guys think your opinions mean more than the actual players?

@miktoxic said:

oh BTW harrison is back at practice. so much for his threat to retire............too bad. goon. i knew he liked spears.

Without the last sentence you coulod be talking about the Steelers fan reaction to Pig Ben's reoccuring problem. You forgot to add one more thing that Steelers fans say to trump all arguements, "Who won six rings?"

@gafreleets said:

tough guy.

FYI, Glad you brought up testicles- Mack got flagged for retaliation earlier in the year when a KC Harrison wannabe tried to rip his family jewels out of their sockets.

Considering how lousy that game was being called, I'd say it was a smart decision.

@sligo said:

On Friday, Cribbs told his friend not to change the way he plays, and that Harrison’s job is to simply “knock people out.”

Cribbs, who played at Kent State with Harrison, believes he helped persuade Pittsburgh’s big hitter not to retire.

From: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-nflfines

I'm glad at least one Brown is an old school tough guy that likes to play football.

I guess like the Bible says "to forgive is Divine"- but that shot could have broken your neck Josh. And show me the object was to "try and knock players out of the game?"

Old school tough guy? Hey, I'm real old school- so old I even remember when these were LEGAL. So here's the new rules of Arena Ball (as in Roman Colosseum). The Rosters will be expanded to 100 players- the following will be permitted. Head Slaps, other flagrant blows to the head, spearing. Grabbing the facemask is allowed and encouraged. Crackback and chop blocks are fine. In addition to the current scoring rules, One point will be given to the defending team for each horse collar tackle. Three points will be awarded for each opposing player knocked out of the game, and that will increase to six if it is the opposing team's quarterback. Current timekeeping will be retained, except in the event of a team being able to cause an opponent fatality, in which case the game will be declared over, and the team causing the fatality being declared the winner, regardless of score.

tough guy.

@medicineman said:

well either i am gay, in wich case this isn't much of an insult, simply fact.......while you're showing yourself to be completely ignorant and discriminitory.

or i'm not gay and you calling me gay shows that you know i'm not or else it wouldn't be an insult.

i won't tell you either way, i'll just let your brain try and comprehend that catch 22 and hopefully you'll stroke out.

@buck-the-frowns said:

Ghoolie will give (attempt to give) repeated ball shots before he himself gets knocked out. When he wakes he will accuse them of fighting dirty!

@feartheroo said:

This is like saying oh well I got a speeding ticket for going 100mph in a 20 zone. All my friends said I should have never gotten that ticket, so it must be wrong!

Goodell has admitted to fining legal hits.

Again this isn't me or Steelers saying it. It's your players and players all over the league saying this. I think it's fair that the players have more of a say in the rules than any fan.

Hillis-iz-Boss said:

Ok Professor ! It the Internet , I just love it when someone has nothing to say so he picks at English 101. Message boards tend to be a place where quick messages are typed out , a mix of internet and texting "shorthand" exist. WHO Cares ??? If its that hard on "Your Highness" then pass us by ...my Lord.

By the way Hillis-iz-Boss ? Nice use of English in YOUR Screen name (hypocrite) !

@gafreleets said:

Gafreleets=gay gay gay

@medicineman said:

hear the roid thing about harrison too much without even a lick of proof. wich just makes you look stupid. find even a shred of proof (anyone) or stop saying this trash.

funny thing is, you can't bitch about this anymore when even cribbs say's "don't change the way you play, knock people out" (paraphrased).

mack, if you had even one ball rollin around in your scrotum you would have dealt with him on the field. just ask the legendary Jack Lambert how he dealt

with players he thought were cheap shotting his teamates. man up or go play golf.

@king-ghoolie-lives said:

Just watch how much his play degrades now that he has to play fairly.

Get me his agent's name and I will challenge the dumb bastard to a fistfight at teh end of the season.

Which one, Harrison or his agent? Harrison's agent is Bill Parise. I can get you in contact with him, too. This I have got to see.

@rich4eagle said:

BEREA, Ohio -- The NFL is demanding that Steelers linebacker James Harrison and others stop using their helmets as weapons.

And although he was the victim of Harrison's viciousness, Browns wide receiver Joshua Cribbs had a softer message for Pittsburgh's enforcer: "Don't change you."

AFC North blog

Walker ESPN.com's James Walker writes about all things AFC North in his division blog.

• Blog network: NFL Nation

"You're a player, so play," Cribbs said he told Harrison, his former Kent State teammate and close friend. "Let refs ref. Let the NFL administration, let everyone do their jobs. If you get fined, just try to tailor yourself, but play the game. Don't try to change who you are."

Cribbs returned to practice Friday for the first time since suffering a concussion when he was knocked out last Sunday by Harrison, who moments later flattened Browns wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi with a blow that earned him a $75,000 fine.

Massaquoi has not yet been cleared by Cleveland's medical staff and is unlikely to play Sunday at New Orleans.

Cribbs, who said he hasn't experienced any concussion-related symptoms since Monday, believes he will be ready to face the Saints.

This weekend, the league will be watching closely for head-high hits following a rash of nasty shots last weekend that resulted in commissioner Roger Goodell promising to impose tougher penalties against players who lead with their helmets on tackles.

Harrison, one of the primary offenders cited by the league, was so upset by the crackdown that he considered retirement. While some of his Pittsburgh teammates didn't take Harrison seriously, Cribbs did and urged him to stay in the game.

Cribbs knows that Harrison lowered his helmet to deliver a knockout blow.

It comes with the territory.

"In the game, you're not saying, 'Oh, I'm not going to hurt this guy or I'm not going to hit him like this'," Cribbs said. "He's like a heat-seeking missile. I have the football and he's targeting on me. He's not like, 'I've got to hit him properly, let me aim at his legs.' He's just trying to get me down any means possible. And I would do the same. I came at people like that as well, heat-seeking missiles."

Cribbs believes he had an impact on Harrison's decision to return to the field after a one-day absence to consider his future.

"I think it meant a lot for him to hear me tell him, 'Hey man, go out there and play and ball out.' And I told him as well, 'Remember, we play ya'll again, so don't think I forgot. We're boys off the field, but when we step on that field, I don't know you, dog'."

Cribbs said he didn't suffer any memory loss from the Harrison hit, which came after the Browns' Pro Bowler took off on a running play out of the WildDawg formation. As he neared the line of scrimmage, Cribbs was being wrapped up by Pittsburgh's LaMarr Woodley when Harrison came flying in from the side.

The league said the shot was legal -- a claim the Browns dispute -- and Cribbs found it within reasonable limits as well.

"I had the ball and was going down and he came in to clean me up," Cribbs said. "It's his job to try to put me out of the game. If I was a linebacker, you try to knock guys out. That's what linebackers try to do for the most part. You have to follow the rules, but that's their job."

Harrison was branded a villain by Cleveland fans, and he became the poster child this week for the league's attempt to reduce head injuries.

Browns center Alex Mack said Harrison was using his helmet the entire game -- and not just on the publicized hits that rocked Cribbs and Massaquoi.

"If you watch the game film, [Harrison] was doing that to everyone on every play," Mack told The Associated Press. "People would be on the ground and he would try to spear them. There's a play on film where [running back] Peyton Hillis is tackled and he comes up and spears him. It's like you're being cheap, you're being dirty."

Cribbs said he respects Mack's opinion, but that if Harrison wore an orange helmet and not the Steelers' black and gold, the perception would be different.

"If [Harrison] played for our team we'd be applauding his efforts," Cribbs said. "I'm just trying to be honest. If he were on our team we'd be rallying behind him, just like his team is doing for him. He plays to knock people out. Wouldn't you want a linebacker like that on your team?"

Cribbs won't change his game because of the league's stricter stance on helmet hits. He believes last weekend's rash of hard knocks around the league was "a fluke."

He appreciates what's being done to protect players' safety, but wonders if the league hasn't gone too far, too quickly.

"They're making the right strides in trying to protect players but at the same time, the NFL's walking a fine line between just changing the game and changing players' abilities," he said. "This is the NFL. Everybody can't play and everybody's not able to play. You have to be able to take these hits and get up. That's why we get paid the way we do. It's a tough sport."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5714223

@sligo said:

On Friday, Cribbs told his friend not to change the way he plays, and that Harrison's job is to simply "knock people out."

Cribbs, who played at Kent State with Harrison, believes he helped persuade Pittsburgh's big hitter not to retire.

From: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-nflfines

I'm glad at least one Brown is an old school tough guy that likes to play football.

Amen, players play and losers squawk while backing into the pay window.........right Mack???

On Friday, Cribbs told his friend not to change the way he plays, and that Harrison’s job is to simply “knock people out.”

Cribbs, who played at Kent State with Harrison, believes he helped persuade Pittsburgh’s big hitter not to retire.

From: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-nflfines

I'm glad at least one Brown is an old school tough guy that likes to play football.