Fortunately, Kaela Carpenter had no input in the decision regarding the proper discipline to be imposed on Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman for an incident of unnecessary roughness on Monday night.
Under the predetermined schedule of penalties for on-field infractions, Sherman has received a fine for the hit on Bills kicker Dan Carpenter that came after Sherman jumped offside before the snap. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the fine was in the neighborhood of $9,000. (The 2016 fine schedule suggests that the fine was likely $9,115.)
NFL senior V.P. of officiating Dean Blandino tweeted during the game that Sherman should have been flagged for unnecessary roughness for the hit that happened after officials failed to stop the play. Sherman wasn’t.
The failure to flag Sherman sparked a series of bizarre developments and errors. Carpenter, who was injured and received attention from trainers, was required to leave the field for a play. The Bills opted to spike the ball after a snap in order to burn off the play; based on the NFL’s rule book and case book, that maneuver arguably should have triggered a foul for intentional grounding. Then, a delay of game penalty was called after the officials kept the Bills from snapping the ball for a field goal attempt. After the five yards were imposed, Carpenter missed.