But, Did They Fine His Hair?
By Wyatt Earp | October 22, 2011
Troy Polamalu is the latest victim on the over-officious jerks at the NFL.
The NFL fined a player $10,000 for making a call from the sidelines, even though all he wanted to do was assure his wife he was okay after suffering a possible concussion earlier.
Superstar safety Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers was seen talking on a cell phone while sitting on the bench during last week’s game against Jacksonville. That’s prohibited by the league, and officials were not swayed by Polamalu’s extenuating circumstances.
A completely douchetastic move on their part. Personally, I think the NFL is getting out of control with the nontroversies. Thankfully, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin hasn’t lost his mind:
“He has had a history of concussion-like symptoms in the past,” Tomlin said. “[Polamalu's wife] was concerned. In this era of player safety, you would think that common sense would prevail in some of these things. It wasn’t a personal call. He wasn’t checking on his bank account.”
Well done, NFL. You’re making MLB’s leadership look like rocket scientists.
Topics: Duct Tape Advisory | 11 Comments »
October 22nd, 2011 at 8:07 pm
A.J. Hawk was given the same fine ($10k) for flicking off the camera and fans. Yeah, that sounds totally fair right? Goodell needs to go.
October 22nd, 2011 at 8:28 pm
Stupid. That’s like the lawyer commercials that tell you the first person you should call after an accident is them. I have been in accidents. Here is who I called, in order of calling:
1. The police.
2. My wife.
3. My insurance company.
If I was going to call a lawyer, it would be the fourth call I make. I think there’s a difference between making “personal phone calls” and reassuring your wife that you are not seriously injured. Stupid, NFL. Just stupid.
October 22nd, 2011 at 9:22 pm
Josh – The product is still good, but the politics is terrible. Forcing Rush Limbaugh out of a partial ownership of a team, fines for hits the league thinks are too severe, and the ridiculous blackout rule are why the sport still needs to mature.
Picky – Consider the entirety of the circumstances. Big difference between Polamalu calling to tell his wife he’s okay and Joe Horn pulling out a cellphone from the field goal for a TD celebration.
October 22nd, 2011 at 10:10 pm
The NFL has gone to hell, and the commish is an asshat.
Oh yeah, and being that Goodell is clearly a Steelers hater, from past history, of course he didn’t intervene on this to commute this “violation”. #putz
/rant
October 23rd, 2011 at 8:32 am
Any zero tolerance rule in anything is always later found to be completely stupid and idiotic.
I guess he will have to do another shampoo commercial to make up for this hit.
October 23rd, 2011 at 10:01 am
Thank you! The man could have been concussed…it was the doc’s phone. And CBS made a point of pointing that camera at Polamalu while he was on the phone. You just knew he was calling his wife!
And I’m not just fired up because I’m a Steelers fan, either.
Why not let the cheerleaders play? The NFL is making the guys play like girls anyway…
October 23rd, 2011 at 8:51 pm
It’s getting to the point that I don’t even watch anymore… sigh
October 23rd, 2011 at 9:07 pm
Just watch this – my swooner #99:
October 23rd, 2011 at 9:38 pm
NFL = No Fun League.
The NFL makes boredom look exciting.
October 24th, 2011 at 9:54 am
Smite – I was never a big fan of Goodell. Too smug for my tastes.
Danny – Well, he does have the hair for it.
Vicki – And it’s such a sissified game as compared to the 50′s and 60′s.
Old NFO – I still love watching, but I need to shower afterward.
Bob – And this year, the product isn’t as good as it has been. Lots of terrible teams this year.
October 25th, 2011 at 2:15 pm
I guess I’m the contrarian on this one.
- We know he was calling wife and not making game related, or other personal calls how? Oh right, because he said so. And every time a player goes down he is really injured and not just trying to get some rest.
- A call to his wife, for any reason, is a personal call. (I take it his wife isn’t a trainer on the team)
- Calling his wife is a common sense safety issue? Not so much. If safety is the concern a team doctor or trainer should have been addressing it.
- If he really felt the need to talk to his wife that much, then $10k is still only just a slap on the wrist for a player like him.
- It may be different from Joe Horn, but its asshats like Horn that make these side rules more likely to be seen as necessary.
- If its that important to reach his wife I see no reason why he can’t voluntarily leave the game and call her from off the field.
- I also see not reason why there can’t be a way for a player to reach an emergency contact during a game if really needed, but it should be other than a personal call
I’m not necessarily defending Goodell in this or any other decision he’s made, but I don’t have a problem with the fine in this situation.