The NFL isn’t willing to extend replay reviews to cover penalties, so there’s no recourse on the field when officials miss a helmet-to-helmet hit on a quarterback that’s obvious to anyone watching at home.
While teams go unpunished for players violating the rules during games, the league is fine with punishing the players after the fact. Once the NFL admitted that Gene Steratore’s officiating crew dropped the ball when Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall launched himself headfirst into Panthers quarterback Cam Newton’s head in last Thursday’s game, it was obvious that a fine would follow.
According to multiple reports, that fine has been issued. Marshall will owe $24,309 for his shot on Newton.
Safety Darian Stewart was fined $18,231 for drilling Panthers quarterback Cam Newton with a helmet-to-helmet hit that was flagged on the field, although there was no real penalty to the Broncos as Newton’s intentional grounding penalty on the same play meant the penalties offset.