One of my favorite things about sports is the violence.
Say what you want about that. I don’t care. If you’re appalled by it, stop and think to yourself about the kinds of highlights that go viral from each sport. Of course, there are incredible displays of finesse that make the highlight reels, but many of the best sports clips are acts of sheer power. Ask yourself why the most popular sport in America is football, and why UFC is growing rapidly. Violence does not turn the public away.
Disclaimer: I don’t mean violence in a way that implies illegal play or has the intention of injuring other players or apathy towards the health and safety of players. Watching players get hurt is not fun and I wish it would never happen. I myself have sustained significant injuries playing sports, and I know how much it sucks. I will also acknowledge that long term injuries and conditions from sports (such as CTE) are devastating, and I hope modern science and medicine can work towards mitigating this.
Violence might not be the right word, but it’s a cool hook for the article so that’s how I introduced my topic. I am not really referring to violent collisions. What I want to talk about today are displays of power. That includes big hits, but also includes things like posterizing dunks, mammoth home runs, triple-digit MPH fastballs, and cannon-like slap shots. I’ll share some of my favorites across the big four American sports here today.
FOOTBALL
This one is the easiest one. Big hits in football are satisfying to watch, and also can provide huge momentum swings in games. It’s just one man lighting up another. It’s awesome. I’ll enter into evidence one of my favorite Youtube videos of all time by one of my favorite Youtubers (shoutout to The Highlight Factory. I wish this account was as active as it once was). I mean, this video has more than 50 million views for good reason…
In this video is a 2014 hit from Brandon Browner on Ladarius Green. I remember this vividly (and I still maintain that the hit was textbook and the ensuing pick-6 should have held up) as a young teen watching my Patriots in the midst of their march to their first Superbowl win in a decade. They were coming off a loss to the Packers in Green Bay, but were still in a 9-1 stretch in which they were ripping the NFL a new one. This hit was pretty much the epitome of that. In 2018, Browner was arrested for attempted murder. This 2014 hit suggests a pattern. Goodness gracious.
(Note: We at A2Z Sports do not condone murder nor the attempt to do so. Not cool at all from Browner. The previous comments were purely wordplay, and we maintain our anti-murder stance.)
Another favorite of mine is Broncos Hall of Fame safety Steve Atwater stopping the massive Chiefs running back “Nigerian Nightmare” Christian Okoye in his tracks.
Beyond the hits, football provides examples of powerful play with running backs running downhill. Whether it be trucks, stiff arms, or just breaking tackles, it’s fun to watch. Below are some of my favorite examples.
I love football.
BASKETBALL
The primary examples of power in basketball have to be posterizing dunks. One giant human being rising over another giant, catching a body, and throwing down the hammer. It has to be so demoralizing looking up at a dude dropping a booming dunk right on your head with his nuts swinging in your face. Exhibit A: Vince Carter makes the United States of America proud by embarrassing some poor Frenchman who must’ve known they had no business trying to beat the greatest country on Earth.
Perhaps the most disrespectful dunk of all time was Shaq on Chris Dudley. Shaq dominated him with no remorse and shoved him at the end for good measure. It was so humiliating for Dudley that he hurled the basketball at Shaq instead of inbounding. Tough day at the office for Chris.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Lebron’s alley-oop against the Celtics over Jason Terry, when Lebron was with the Heat. Terry stood no chance here. I can still hear the call without seeing the play: “Chalmers, Cole, JAMES!”
One of the best ones I’ve seen is actually from the Nuggets’ Aaron Gordon this year. The man was flying, and trying to get in front of him was completely futile.
BASEBALL
Chicks dig the longball. Not only is this one of the greatest sports commercials ever, it’s a statement that rings true for pretty much everyone, besides maybe opposing pitchers. I certainly dig the longball.
It’s so satisfying seeing players launch absolute moonshots deep into the stands. There’s nothing quite like it. The distinct crack of the bat, the roaring/silencing of the crowd, and watching a ball travel a ludicrous distance. It’s just so cool. I’ll share a few highlights that I’m partial to.
Rhys Hoskins hit a rocket last year for the Phillies in the NLDS vs. the defending champion Braves and celebrated with probably the most electric pimp-job of a home run I’ve ever seen.
Speaking of playoff dingers, Bautista’s bat-flipped the hell out of a walk off nuke to send the Blue Jays past the Rangers.
Barry Bonds hit a home run in the World Series against the Angels in 2002 that I’m not sure has landed yet.
I yearn for steroid era baseball. Another player who was caught juicing, Red Sox legend Manny Ramirez, hit a ball into the upper deck in Toronto where they don’t even sell seats. If it hadn’t rolled down, it would probably still be up there.
A slept-on home run is David Ortiz’s bomb in an exhibition game in Japan in 2004. This was perhaps the biggest bomb dropped on Japanese soil since 1945.
(Note: Again, this is wordplay. A2Z Sports boldly holds a stance against the further use of nuclear weapons and we believe nuclear war would be bad.)
No-doubter home runs are the best.
Beyond homers, a pitcher can overpower a hitter with a fastball. Enjoy a highlight of Aroldis Chapman ringing up a helpless Jake Cronenworth. I have no idea how a 104 MPH fastball is even possible, and even less clue how you’re supposed to hit it.
Although it has largely been taken out of the game, there used to be a small element of collision in baseball as well, leading to some exciting highlights.
HOCKEY
Like football, a big chunk of hockey’s displays of power comes from big hits. The game is so fast, so when a player catches a body in the open ice, it’s truly a spectacle. The element of the boards also sets the stage for more bone-crushing hits. I’ve already made my points about hits with football, so I’ll just link highlights now. They might be even better than the football highlights.
Torey Krug had an incredible showing of old-time hockey when he flew helmetless all the way down the ice to lay a huge hit in the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. The highlight is pure electricity.
Jacob Trouba is possibly the biggest hitter in the game today, and his hits are something else. He has a knack for squaring players up and laying the boom.
Although it was against one of my favorite players in Brad Marchand, PK Subban had unreal timing for a full speed hit that’s amazing to watch.
Now, PK is still laying devastating hits in the media.
Last example I’ll give here is Milan Lucic breaking the glass against the Maple Leafs in 2008. I could not believe this was possible when I was a little kid. I still can’t.
Hockey has a lot more to offer beyond hits for powerful highlights, though. Among the most satisfying goals to watch are shots where a player just loads up and fires an absolute piss-missile past the goalie. Ovechkin’s one-timer from the circle is an iconic shot that I’ve seen countless times and I don’t get tired of. Here’s an 8-minute (!) compilation of them nonstop:
Other players (David Pastrnak) also do this, but it’s tough to beat that Russian rocket.
Steve Yzerman blowing one by the goalie from the blue line is a mixture of power and precision that is just jaw-dropping.
Perhaps the best example for this type of athletic overpowering is Zdeno Chara, who holds the NHL all-time record for hardest shot at 108.8 MPH, gliding to within 15 feet of the goalie and unloading a rocket. He’s done this a few times; here’s one of him doing it in 2008 against future Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist:
I’ve shared a lot of highlights in this article, and I had a great time doing it. There’s something about this general category of highlight that fire’s me up. Maybe it’s some primal biology; maybe I’m a caveman. But I think these highlights appeal to most guys who love sports. Dudes love watching dudes kick ass.
With that being said, I’ll leave you with one more type of high-octane highlight. Hockey fights (it won’t let me share the link so I’ll just embed it for you).
Top 10 Best Hockey Fights of All Time – YouTube