Bears linebacker Jon Bostic was fined $21,000 for a hit on Chargers wide receiver Mike Willie, and teammates are already speaking out to complain that Bostic was doing nothing more than playing good, clean physical football.
It’s only minor consolation, but there is one piece of good news for Bostic: He won’t actually get $21,000 taken out of his paycheck.
That’s because Bostic’s salary this season is $405,000, meaning that his 17 weekly paychecks come out to $23,823.53 before taxes. Under NFL rules, players can appeal fines and have them reduced to no more than 25 percent of their weekly pay.
As a practical matter, the most a player making $405,000 a year can be fined for any one hit is $5,955, which is 25 percent of one weekly paycheck. So once Bostic is done with his appeal, his fine will likely be reduced by about $15,000.
Of course, many would argue that Bostic (who wasn’t flagged for the hit) did nothing wrong in the first place, and that on appeal his fine should be reduced to zero.