Lovie “Warned” Dashon Goldson
July 4th, 2014
In March, Joe doffed his cap in respect to Dashon “Hawk” Goldson. The Bucs safety made an effort to cut down on his flags and remove himself from NFL warden commissioner Roger Goodell’s Most Wanted List by hiring his former youth football coach to re-teach him how to tackle.
Goldson, who was fined six figures and suspended last year for illegal hits, came to grips (finally) that something had to change. Joe respected that, but Lovie Smith apparently didn’t.
When asked at the NFL owners meetings in Orlando this spring about Goldson hiring a tackling coach, one could tell by Lovie’s taut response he wasn’t fond of the move.
In fact, Goldson, who has sheared his dreads and was wearing a biker’s-chain wallet for his TV appearance, mentioned this week how Lovie called him up and scolded him for hiring a tackling coach.
“Definitely he has warned me,” said Goldson, who appeared on “America’s Pregame Show,” seen on weeknights on Fox Sports 1.
“[The Bucs] pay me a lot of money to be on the football field and I don’t want to hurt my team by not being there. [Lovie] reached out to me when he first took the [Bucs] job and told me, ‘There was no need for [you] to hire a tackling coach. We are going to get those hits right.’
“I’m going to be the leading example going into training camp for a lot of organizations on tackling and doing it the right way. My coach has warned me and I am sure he will implement that in our practices.”
Also in the interview, which you can enjoy below, Goldson explained why he doesn’t regret his hits and that his hardest hit was two years ago when he hammered Serta Perfect Sleeper spokesman, mattress-in-the-front-yard Mike Williams.
July 4th, 2014 at 8:29 am
Myself, I see it as much as Goldson putting the story out and wanting the league Nazi’s to know there is a difference between playing physical and playing dirty.
July 4th, 2014 at 8:34 am
Recievers……make sure your cups are secure……put your knee surgeons on notice….let your family know you may be spending some extra time with them because it’s going to be brutal!!!
July 4th, 2014 at 9:00 am
Goldson is a waste of 8mm.
July 4th, 2014 at 10:28 am
He doesn’t hit as hard as he thinks he does. Mark Barron is out hardest hitter by far, tired of seeing him get fined for his that players brush off like mosquito bites, can’t even jar the ball loose so we don’t need a has been hard hitter we need a cover safety
July 4th, 2014 at 10:30 am
Goldson plays like you should play and how you used to be able to intimidate. [Unnecessary. — Joe]
July 4th, 2014 at 10:44 am
I disagree with a number of commenters here; I think Goldson has done extraordinary during his career, and at least two (probably more) of the hits of which Goldson was fined by the NFL should not have been. There was a target on Goldson’s proverbial back by the NFL, and I hope that with the coming of Lovie, improved defense across the board, and Goldson’s “Stand-Up” attitude, that target is removed by Goodall!
July 4th, 2014 at 10:45 am
Why is everyone complaining about he’s s hard hitting safety? He’s our FS who is supposed to cover and he can’t do thatv
July 4th, 2014 at 11:20 am
Goldson will bloom in T-2 with Lovie’s Coaching. He has the right attitude this year too. Happy 4th of July everyone!!!
July 4th, 2014 at 11:30 am
Approach with control, bend your knees, square you’re shoulders, pick a side, wrap and drive through the ball carrier. There 8 year olds all over America learning to do that this summer, out there making $0.00 dollars learning the essentials of the game. Stay sharp Hawk!
July 4th, 2014 at 11:43 am
There is no warning the hawk. The hawk warns those crossing the middle by breaking their bones
July 4th, 2014 at 12:52 pm
You guys are out of your minds, lol.
EVERY YEAR Goldson talks about how he spoke with his coach and was going to do it right…and then the season starts and it is same old Goldson.
He may have been the benefit of a couple bad calls, but it was his own fault for painting a target on his back with the refs.
I have NO pity for that selfish idiot. He’ll get suspended this year for certain.
July 4th, 2014 at 1:44 pm
I know one thing the first time he screws up in a game and gets an illegal hit penalty Coach is gonna sit him down. YOU HAVE TO PLAY THE RULES! It’s not the same nfl you must correct your technique and follow them. Your no good to the team sitting on the sideline. Flike my old coach would tell me FIGURE IT OUT!!! If you can’t figure it out then you don’t need to be here!
July 4th, 2014 at 2:17 pm
Sure seems like there are a lot of available guys sitting around that are capable of being an NFL safety. The hawk may wanna watch his back.
July 4th, 2014 at 2:20 pm
Pro Bowl for “the hawk” this year, yeah I said it.
July 4th, 2014 at 3:13 pm
I was at that game in SF when Goldson leveled Mike Williams. I was sitting 27 rows up, but I could hear the hit like I was on the field. I have never seen a hit like that live. As soon as it happened, my first thought was that he had just killed Williams. I still have no idea how he got up from it.
July 5th, 2014 at 8:35 am
I think the Hawk will change his ways this year and be the hard hitting safety we signed.
July 5th, 2014 at 8:41 am
KeithInTampa is right. Goldson is not a dirty player. The nfl just wants to remove the appearance of violence from the game. Hard clean hits are not permitted, especially by marked players/teams. Clayborn and Goldson were wrongly penalized last yearly and targeted by the refs & nfl. This garbage about how others players have adjusted is nonsense because there were plenty of hard, if not dirty, hits by other non-marked players that were never penalized because those players and teams were not on the unwritten target list. Goodell is bad for the game. Frivolous player lawsuits have contributed to the officiating issue…and I am not saying that all player lawsuits are frivolous. So don’t let your poor reading comprehension inspire faux outrage! Hopefully with Schiano gone & Lovie here and a Goldson publicly giving lip service about proper tackling technique the bias will subside a little. I doubt it but since this is the season of wishful thinking!….
July 7th, 2014 at 10:59 am
lovie smith had the likes of derrick brooks and shelton quarles practicing tackling daily well into their prime, i think we can safely assume legal and effective tackles will be a point of emphasis with this group. i also think the structure of the Tampa 2 will make it easier for The Hawk to line up his hits