Yes, $100,000 will come out of the paycheck of Steelers coach Mike Tomlin for his Thanksgiving sideline side step. But that’s not the end of the punishment.
While Peter King of TheMMQB.com said during Friday’s edition of Pro Football Talk on NBCSN that the Steelers will lose a draft pick only if the Ravens miss the playoffs due to the failure of Jacoby Jones to score a touchdown on the play with which Tomlin interfered, King has since advised PFT that he was incorrect.
A late-round draft pick will indeed be forfeited by the Steelers, regardless of whether the Ravens miss the playoffs. In the unlikely event that the tiebreaking process for the Ravens goes deep enough to consider net points and the Ravens miss the playoffs because the drive in question ended in a field goal and not a touchdown, the penalty will be enhanced.
Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports first reported that the Steelers will lose a late-round pick. As the league has announced, the specific penalty will be determined once the full draft order is finalized, which will happen after the postseason concludes — and after all compensatory picks are distributed.