The Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was fined $400,000 by the NFL on Wednesday for interfering with a kickoff return during the team’s game against the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night.
In addition, the league stated that because of Tomlin’s actions, which interfered with a play on the field, it will think about denying the Steelers selection picks.
With a reported value of $500,000, the $100,000 fine is tied for the second-highest fine ever imposed on an NFL coach (Bill Belichick, 2007).
Tomlin should have received a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, according to the league, for his actions, which included stepping onto the field while standing on the white line that borders the playing field during Jacoby Jones’ kickoff return.
“As I stated yesterday, I take full responsibility for my actions, and I apologize for causing negative attention to the Pittsburgh Steelers organization,” Tomlin said in a press release. “I agree to accept the fine I was given. I’ll stop talking about this now because I have a big game against the Miami Dolphins this Sunday.
John Harbaugh, the coach of the Ravens, expressed his respect for “everyone involved” and “the process.”
“We have the utmost respect for Mike Tomlin and the Steelers. We never actually considered for even a split second that there was intentionality involved,” he remarked.
Steelers security The notion that the Steelers may lose draft picks in this scenario, according to Ryan Clark, is “stupid.”
Steelers security The notion that the Steelers may lose draft picks in this scenario, according to Ryan Clark, is “stupid.”
When asked if the league’s decision to not apply the punishment was fair, he responded, “It’s not supposed to be fair.”
“Goodell, Roger. He asked, “When has he been fair?”
Clark expressed his admiration for Tomlin’s handling of the matter.
“He acknowledged that he was accountable. He knows what he did was wrong, and you like a man who takes responsibility for his actions and accepts them,” he remarked. “We all just want to be able to move on from it.”
Tomlin expressed regret for his conduct on Tuesday, but he insisted that he had no intention of influencing Jones’ return.
During his weekly news conference on Tuesday, Tomlin spent the first twenty minutes discussing the play in which Jones could have scored a touchdown if he hadn’t changed course while Tomlin’s right foot was still on the field.
“I think for him it was to not run from it, to not seem like he was being standoffish about the situation, accept it as a head coach and as a man,” Clark stated. “I think that’s the reason he answered so many questions.”
Tomlin adopted a more accommodating demeanor on Tuesday, essentially reversing his remarks from the previous week following the Steelers’ 22–20 defeat, in which he claimed he was in the white stripes separating the bench from the field because other coaches weren’t.
