So far, only Washington defensive lineman Chris Baker and Philadelphia tackle Jason Peters have received fines for their role in last Sunday’s rumble at Lincoln Financial Field. But more fines are coming.
Per a league source, two or three more players will be fined this week as a result of the bench-clearing brouhaha.
The fines weren’t imposed already because the officiating crew didn’t specifically list other responsible parties in the post-game report submitted to the league office. As one source previously explained it, the absence of a specific recitation of the offense on the post-game report saved Ravens receiver Steve Smith from getting fined after he threw Bengals cornerback Adam Jones to the ground by the facemask in Week One.
Ideally, the league office will separately review film and impose fines, regardless of what does or doesn’t appear on the report. As to the other Washington and Philadelphia players involved in last week’s fight, that will happen in the coming days.
As to Baker and Peters, both were fined for unnecessary roughness. The Peters fine arose from Rule 12, Section 2, Article 12(c) of the NFL Official Playing Rules, which prohibits “striking, swinging at, or clubbing the head, neck, or face of an opponent with the wrist(s), arm(s), elbow(s), or hand(s).” Baker’s fine comes from Rule 12, Section 2, Article 14 of the NFL Official Playing Rules, which states that “[n]o player shall grasp and control, twist, turn, push, or pull the facemask of an opponent in any direction.”
The available footage will be reviewed to determine whether other players engaged in similar or related activities. And those players will find out on a somewhat delayed basis that they’ll be making a somewhat sizable involuntary donation to the NFL Foundation, which assists former players in need through the NFL Player Care Foundation and the NFLPA’s Player Assistance Trust.