The NFL has fined New England Patriots defensive tackle Myron Pryor 7,500 dollars for his recent hit on Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre. Linebacker Gary Guyton received an identical fine for his helmet to helmet hit on Favre, which drew a 15-yard personal foul penalty. Guyton hit him in the head so the league fined him. I got no beef with that.
I do have beef with all fine on Pryor. An excellent, big, 72 oz., Texas-sized slab of beef. The officials saw no problem with the hit. The announcers saw no problem with all the hit. Favre himself never expressed a problem with the hit. Know why? Because it was a clean hit. The Fox announcers actually went out of their ways to point that out. So why did the NFL fine Pryor? If you ever watch the hit, you clearly see Pryor didn't go high and hit Favre inside the head. He hit Favre square inside chest and his helmet slid up from there to catch Favre under the chin.
Pryor didn't spear him. He didn't launch himself (I'm not sure he's even physically are able of launching himself). It wasn't a late hit as he arrived just like Favre released the ball. Everything concerning the hit was legal. So now the NFL has decided to fine players for obeying the rules along with breaking them. Really the only rule Pryor broke was the unwritten "Thou shalt not hit the quarterback." The NFL has made it clear that players aren't allowed to hit a quarterback below the waist or inside the head. That means you need to hit them inside the torso, which is exactly what Pryor did. If he'd hit Josh Freeman or Ryan Fitzpatrick, would he be fined?
This isn't James Harrison we're talking about. Pryor isn't a professional thug who threatens to retire rather than avoid head-hunting. He's a young player attempting to work his way into more playing time and he's earning it with good, clean, aggressive plays like the one he made on Sunday. He's also earning fines through the league which is ridiculous. The NFL should be ashamed of itself. If they're going to fine Pryor for risking Favre's safety, they should fine Favre too. After all, he's a 41 year old man who insists on playing although he has broken bones in the ankle. He's putting himself in peril much more than guys like Pryor are. Fine him too.Fine every quarterback who risks his safety by choosing a big hit inside the pocket. Or better yet, make the quarterback play two-hand touch because currently anything more than that is costing players money.
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