San Francisco 49ers linebacker Manny Lawson drew a personal foul penalty on Sunday when his hand made contact with the helmet of Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton, on the kind of play that defenders argue they can’t avoid if they’re going to play the game of football.
So there’s good news for Lawson today: He wasn’t fined for that hit, even though there was a penalty called on the play, which wiped out a sack.
The bad news is that Lawson was fined $12,500 for a different play, one that wasn’t flagged, when his helmet hit Orton in the chest area. No word on why the officials didn’t throw a flag on that one, but the league office disagreed with the officials’ assessment of it as a clean hit.
Another 49ers outside linebacker, Ahmad Brooks, has been fined $10,000 for hitting Orton in the head and neck area. A penalty was called on that play, and it wiped out a sack and forced fumble by Brooks.
