There continues to be a disconnect between the NFL’s disciplinary process and NFL officiating.
Falcons fullback Keith Smith has been fined $87,418, the biggest fine the NFL has given any player this season, for what the lords of discipline termed unnecessary roughness.
But Smith was not penalized on the play. It was the first play of the Falcons’ game against the Lions and went unremarked-upon at the time.
Several of the biggest fines that have been given to players this season have been handed down for offenses that the officials didn’t see as penalties. The league would inspire a lot more confidence if the officials and the disciplinary process were on the same page.