Suh fined $7,500 for hit on Delhomme
Detroit Lions’ defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh received a $7,500 fine by the NFL for his facemask takedown of Cleveland Browns’ quarterback Jake Delhomme. Suh was penalized for the hit in the third week of the pre-season with a 15-yard penalty and the league had said they would look into the incident.
Suh grabbed Delhomme by his facemask, twisted it and sent him down to the ground. Suh claimed that he thought Delhomme still had the ball when he wrestled him down.
"I was just going after the ball, and I had no clue that he had gotten rid of it," he said.
Obviously to the league, that can’t excuse the manner in which he took the quarterback down. Ball or no ball, you simply just can’t take a quarterback down that way, or any player for that matter. Delhomme rightfully waived his arms in protest as Suh was assessed the penalty.
Browns’ backup quarterback Seneca Wallace said that he hoped Suh would be suspended but his coach Eric Mangini thought otherwise. Mangini deemed the hit to be a mistake by a rookie and he doesn’t believe Suh had any bad intentions.
Lions’ coach Jim Schwartz wouldn’t comment on the fine: "It's not my job to comment on fines," he said. "He got flagged and it cost us 15 yards."
Suh was picked second overall by the Lions in this year’s draft. Suh was a dominant player for the Nebraska Cornhuskers in college. He was nominated for the Heisman Trophy, practically unheard of for a defensive tackle. After the Lions drafted him, it took a while to reach a deal with Suh, who missed the first two days of training camp. Suh’s agent Roosevelt Barnes is the same agent who represents Michael Crabtree. Crabtree didn’t sign with the 49ers until October last year and it was a concern whether Suh would sign on time with Detroit. The two sides agreed to a five-year deal worth $68 million with $40 million guaranteed, which probably means $7,500 won't send him to the poor house anytime soon.
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