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NEW YORK (AP) — San Francisco 49ers safety Antone Exum Jr. was fined $53 Gary Jennings Jr. Jersey ,482 by the NFL for his hit on Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Robert Woods last Sunday.Exum was penalized for unnecessary roughness on the play in which he hit Woods in his midsection in the third quarter of the 49ers’ 48-32 loss while breaking up a deep pass.The Rams’ Samson Ebukam was also fined $26,739 on Saturday for unnecessary roughness when he lowered his head to initiate contact on a tackle.Miami’s Kiko Alonso and Robert Quinn were docked $10,026 for unnecessary roughness, and Buffalo’s Jordan Mills was fined $13,369 for unsportsmanlike conduct after they were all ejected for their roles in a skirmish between the teams last Sunday.With Bills quarterback Josh Allen already sliding in the third quarter of Buffalo’s 42-17 win, Alonso dived in front of him and kicked the quarterback in the helmet. A scuffle broke out amid a group of players, and Quinn ran in and dived atop the pile.Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was also fined $10,026 for unsportsmanlike conduct during a play in the fourth quarter of that game.Chicago punter Pat O’Donnell has to pay $15,000 after he was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct when he was on the sideline but too close to the side judge, who tripped over him and immediately threw the flag. Bears teammate Deon Bush was fined $10,026 for a facemask penalty against Minnesota.Also docked for unnecessary roughness were Cincinnati’s Alex Redmond ($26,739), Indianapolis’ George Odum ($20,054) and Pittsburgh’s Ramon Foster ($10,026).Dallas’ Antwaun Woods and Kansas City teammates Tyreek Hill and Demarcus Robinson were each fined $10,026 for unsportsmanlike conduct after they were flagged in their games for taunting. Maybe the public address announcer at NFL stadiums is a job for Michael Buffer these days. You know: ”Let’s get ready to rumble!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Unfortunately http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/phil-haynes-jersey-authentic , what goes on inside the boxing ring might be safer than what we saw the last few weeks on the football field. Brawls. Dirty hits.Malicious moves . Targeting. Launching . Nauseating. ”The unnecessary stuff is over the top,” says Broncos linebacker Shaq Barrett, who was not involved in any of the incidents and, presumably, is a neutral observer. ”We should try to get that out of the game.” Leagues at all levels have spent more than a decade seeking enhanced player safety. Most of the time, those initiatives involved rules changes. In the NFL, mostly they have worked. Not so much lately. Troy Vincent, a terrific defensive back in his playing days and now the overseer of football operations for the league, promises that the NFL will look at any adjustments that will diminish the awfulness seen in recent weeks. ”We have had clear directives from the competition committee,” Vincent says. ”They asked us and the players to remove some of the helmet-to-helmet hits that we have seen, as well of some of the blindside blocks and other types of disparaging techniques and behaviors on the field. We have clear directive that this is not something that should be progressive, but that we strongly consider removing a player that is using these techniques that we want out of our game immediately.” Yet the prohibited keeps happening and, it seems, to a higher degree. ”You’re always talking about keeping the poise and understanding the big picture is winning the game,” Saints coach Sean Payton says. ”Part of that is mental toughness. You don’t have to respond and be macho. So many times I hear, `I’m not going to be punked Ugo Amadi Jersey ,’ and I get that. And yet, listen, there’s a discipline element that you’re preaching as coaches. You’re trying to make them understand the big picture, which is winning, and all these side things that can take you down a path contrary to the goal.” While fans of specific teams will take umbrage at one of their guys getting suspended – that’s a basic principle of fandom, that your team can’t be wrong – more objective observers recognize the danger zone these incidents occur in. Two of the most insightful voices in this area, former NFL executive Pat Kirwan and former pro quarterback Jim Miller, discussed the ugliness of what we just saw during their SiriusXM NFL Radio program this week. They brought up a point worth pondering: Why aren’t players being tossed when they go so far across the line of fair play? Miller: ”When are the officials going to be willing to eject players?” Kirwan: ”They should have by now. They think throwing flags is going to stop it. I quote Ray Lewis, we are talking about a receiver coming over the middle and he did a number on the guy. I asked Ray: `What was going through your mind?’ `Look, I’ve got the middle in our zone drop. Anyone who is coming in there, here comes the receiver, at no time in my life did I ever think of the rule book and let him in there with the ball.”’ Miller: ”I go back to that (2015 Steelers-Bengals) playoff game, that’s what lit the fuse, that’s what got the party started. And it was payback (Monday night). The Bengals felt they were wronged by the officials. (They think) if they are not going to police it, boys, we are going to police it. They got one of ours http://www.clevelandbrownsteamonline.com/sione-takitaki-jersey , we’re going to get one of theirs. ”At what point will the officials eject? Kirwan: ”As soon as the head of officials tells them if you don’t eject, we are going to suspend (an official). You’ve got to get this under control. Or the league office stops the game like they should, and say `He’s out now.’ Why can’t they eject from New York?’ ”You’ve got to control it.” Kirwan makes an excellent point that rules on paper mean nothing unless they are enforced, and there are consequences – not only for rules breakers, but for those charged with upholding the rules. ”Stop writing rules and start throwing guys out that you, in your mind, ref, you know intentionally tried to hurt someone,” he says. ”Just throw him out of the game.” Vincent notes that players, fans, coaches, general managers and owners don’t want to see ejections. ”There are only 17 weeks and the philosophy is, if it gets out of control, we ask the referees to maintain control of the game, give them that flexibility,” Vincent says. ”They have that flexibility Sheldrick Redwine Jersey , but we really emphasize let the players play, but if things begin to get out of control, you must maintain control of the game during that window.” In an odd way, maybe pro players need to look back at the grass roots of the game, where USA Football’s initiatives are designed to promote safety and proper tackling techniques – and are working. ”My sense of it as coaches and maybe parents and players see those things,” says USA Football Executive Director Scott Hallenbeck, ”they’re fully aware of Heads Up Football and shoulder tackling. The common denominator is, this is the right way to teach it and it is happening across the board. ”In the past, a kid might be taught differently at the youth level than at the high school level, now it is consistent. The majorities of youth and high school football now follow shoulder tackling. It’s been really comprehensive, we are seeing a great improvement, and coaches are telling us they are seeing a great improvement in overall tackling.” Too bad it’s not always apparent in the NFL. —