TAMPA — It was a physical and emotional game between the Eagles and Saints last week and a few players lost some money because of it.
Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was fined three separate times for over $45,000 as he played his former team for the first time in his career and two Saints were fined for unnecessary roughness.
Here’s a recap of all five fines levied from this game:
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• Saints DL Khristian Boyd was fined $4,665 for his late hit (unnecessary roughness) on DeVonta Smith that resulted in Smith getting knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter. Boyd was not penalized on the play. Smith (concussion) will at least miss the Eagles’ Week 4 game in Tampa after a scary scene in New Orleans.
Why was this fine so minimal?
A hit on a defenseless receiver for a first-time offender normally brings a penalty of $16,883 but a first-offense fine can’t total more than 10% of a player’s salary cap hit for the week. This is written in the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NFL and NFLPA. Boyd has a total cap hit of $839,707 this season, which comes out to around $46,650 per week; it can’t be more than 10% of that figure.
• Saints OL Trevor Penning was fined $11,255 for his late hit (unnecessary roughness) on Darius Slay in the fourth quarter. Penning kept blocking Slay out of bounds and injured Slay’s knee. While Penning was flagged on the field, Slay was unable to return to the game. Although, Slay said this week that if the injury happened earlier, he would have come back in the game. Slay was OK this week and will play against the Buccaneers.
NFL
• And Gardner-Johnson went for a hat trick. He was fined for three different infractions:
1. CJGJ got fined $11,255 for a late hit in the first quarter.
2. He was hit for $16,883 for taunting in the second quarter.
3. And he was hit again for $16,883 for another taunting infraction in the third quarter.
All together, that’s $45,021 in fines from this game. While most of Gardner-Johnson’s salary was paid out in a signing bonus, his base salary in 2024 is $1.375 million, which breaks down into $76,389 per week in the 18-week season. When all is said and done, his take home for Week 3 will be less than half of that: $31,368.
Gardner-Johnson was also fined $11,255 for taunting in Week 2 so his running total on the season is $56,276 through three games.
If you’re wondering what happens with all the fine money, here’s the explanation from the NFL: “The fines collected are donated to the Professional Athletes Foundation to support Legends in need and the NFL Foundation to further support the health, safety and wellness of athletes across all levels, including youth football and the communities that support the game.”
All players are given a chance to appeal their fines and those cases are heard by appeals officers and former NFL players.
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