NFL make final punishment decision on Bengals star Germaine Pratt after brutal helmet hit on Steelers rival Najae Harris
The NFL has decided to discipline Germaine Pratt for one of his acts from the previous week.
In Week 18, the Cincinnati Bengals linebacker received a citation for tackling a Pittsburgh Steelers opponent.
Pratt, 28, entered to tackle Najae Harris, a running back.
However, he made the tackle by leading with his head, which is not permitted in the NFL.
A punishment for “unnecessary roughness” was imposed on Pratt following the helmet-to-helmet collision.
As a consequence, the league fined him $22,511.
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Cincinnati maintained their hopes of qualifying for the playoffs by winning the game 19–17.
However, they were put out of business the next night when the Denver Broncos defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, who were not playing at their best, to guarantee the seventh spot.
Cincinnati ended with a 9-8 record after winning five games in a row.
However, it was insufficient to make it to the postseason.
Pratt has been with the Bengals his whole NFL career.
He was selected with the 72nd overall pick in the third round of the 2019 draft.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network broke the story of Pratt’s fine first.
And because the Bengals season had already ended seven days prior, fans saw the irony of the timing.
“You can’t imagine missing the playoffs and then being fined the money you need to arrange your vacation to Cancun,” one person commented. “Ouch.”
Someone else wrote, “Imagine being in Cancun and finding out you just got fined $22k.”
A third, however, stated, “At least he didn’t get suspended and he’s able to play this weekend.”
What happens to the fine money?
Throughout the season, the NFL routinely fines athletes tens of thousands of dollars.
However, what happens to the money?
According to the NFL, since 2011, around $4 million annually has been allocated to deserving groups.
According to the NFL’s operations website, “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.”
“It would be great if they called this during the game,” added a fourth commenter. Replay assist is where? Are the Steelers simply left out of this?
On Saturday, Pelissero also announced three further fines.
Bijan Robinson, a running back with the Atlanta Falcons, received the same penalty as Pratt for wearing his helmet during a play.
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Drake London, a teammate, received a $11,255 punishment for taunting after he scored a touchdown.
Additionally, Sean Murphy-Bunting, a cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals, was fined $11,817 for a brawl with Jauan Jennings, a receiver for the San Francisco 49ers.