Stafford should of been ejected from the game for that.
Or no fines to the bear as Matt kinda of had it coming to him after that.

WhyteRaven74: Stafford should have a lot bigger fine than that, grabbing someone's helmet and twisting their head around has to carry a very stiff fine and a suspension wouldn't be bad either.

not really. stafford isn't a repeat offender....a small fine was in order. the guy with the shoes is a repeat offender and was warned by the league before the game the previous fine would be doubled. eventually, the league will start punishing the bears by in game penalties.

WhyteRaven74: 182: eventually, the league will start punishing the bears by in game penalties.

The shoe thing is just dumb, let players wear whatever color shoes they want. Grabbing someone by the helmet and twisting their head around is damn dangerous. That he's not a repeat offender is irrelevant, you do something that dangerous you should be getting a very hefty fine, and if you didn't get tossed from the game, then you sit a game or two.

football intrinsically a dangerous sport....what he did was more unsportsmanlike that dangerous. any kid who has played pop warner could tell you that.

as for the dude with the shoes, he's just plain belligerent and doesn't want to follow the rules. ever work some place with a uniform policy?

How much does the league Make in fines a year?

iron_city_ap: The Stafford fine should definately have been higher. The League shouldn't be sending the message that how you look on the field > how you play the game. If they want to fine the guy for a uniform violation, I'm fine with it, but no way in hell should it be more than an unsportsmanlike fine. Repeat offender or not.

Basically, the league has told Bennett that the fine will go up $5k per week if he continues to wear the orange shoes. Link (new window) So it could be argued that while Stafford's play was dangerous it was a heat of the moment thing, Bennett's transgression was premeditated and therefore worthy of a larger fine.

That said, since Stafford is making about 16 times as much money as Bennett, it could also be argued that fines should be based on a player's salary rather than a fixed amount.

Wadded Beef: I can understand uniformity for the product, but when they wouldn't let Peyton Manning wear black high-tops to honor Unitas after he died, well, you gotta be sh*ttin' me.

This is the one that continues to piss me off:

Link (new window)

/Baltimoron.
//Big fan of Unitas.
///Unitas was no Pat Tillman.

What Stafford did was dirty. I'm sure he just wants to fit in with the rest of the Lions, but a quarterback should be above that.

iron_city_ap: The Stafford fine should definately have been higher. The League shouldn't be sending the message that how you look on the field > how you play the game. If they want to fine the guy for a uniform violation, I'm fine with it, but no way in hell should it be more than an unsportsmanlike fine. Repeat offender or not.

The fine is at the right level; $7,500 is a nothing fine for most NFL players, akin to tossing your pocket change into a jar for swearing, but it's a good minimum. The repeat offenses is where the money starts to be felt - a single $7,500 isn't going to cause many NFL players to wince, but you toss on another $10,000 for a second, then a $15,000 for a third... suddenly you're looking at $32,000 in fines. That's when it starts to affect their bottom line. (I wonder if these fines are tax-deductible, if they go to charity?)

What should have happened is that Stafford should have been flagged on the play - the fact that it wasn't flagged is more of the problem than the amount of the fine. The League should sit down with the Ref's and explain that they have to call those, no matter who the player is. As a Lion's fan, I was annoyed that Stafford wasn't flagged - was also a bit miffed at some of the flags on Chicago that seemed to be aimed at telling Chicago to calm the fark down, rather than for any actual infractions.

/Go Lions!
//Might be time to bench Stafford to send him a message - stupid Pick-6's like the first two in the 3rd Quarter deserve a benching.

WhyteRaven74: Stafford should have a lot bigger fine than that, grabbing someone's helmet and twisting their head around has to carry a very stiff fine and a suspension wouldn't be bad either.

At the very least the guy who hit him back shouldn't get DOUBLE the fine (and ejected) this "star protection system" BS has got to go. You Lace up your pads, you take the same farking risks as everyone else out there

WhyteRaven74: Stafford should have a lot bigger fine than that, grabbing someone's helmet and twisting their head around has to carry a very stiff fine and a suspension wouldn't be bad either.

Yeah, but he's a QB, so...he could get away with murder and be fined no more than 30k, tops.

With the orange shoes, it's all about control. You wouldn't want players becoming recognizable - in the NFL it's not supposed to be all about the players like, say, the NBA. They're covered up as much as possible, as indistinguishable as possible, and any type of individuality is frowned upon.

Maintaining control is far more important than player safety to the NFL (and all leagues).

I know in the AFL they fine $50/game for uniform violations...that may not seem like much until you realize they're getting paid $400/game.