Bills' Cody Ford fined for questionable penalty, but Jadeveon Clowney escapes punishment for helmet hit
Are you ready for a tale of two fines?
Here’s the first one: Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Cody Ford was fined $28,075 on Saturday for an illegal blindside block that occurred in last week’s wild-card game against the Houston Texans. The call itself was questionable, but the result was heartbreaking: The penalty took the Bills out of field goal range during overtime, essentially costing them the game.
I understand the rules but it's still crazy that the first play in this clip resulted in a penalty and $28,075 fine and the second play resulted in no fine or penalty. pic.twitter.com/ZRq3A8D9rE
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) January 11, 2020
Bills Mafia started a GoFundMe to help pay for Ford’s fine since they don’t think it should exist. Ford said on Twitter that he’ll give that money to charity.
#BillsMafia I see you, definitely not going unnoticed! I thank you for support and love. The proceeds from the “gofundme “ will be donated to a local buffalo charity. #Buffalove 🤟🏽🖤 https://t.co/nIrZL31H8F
— Cody Ford ✞ (@Cody_Ford74) January 11, 2020
The second fine in this tale doesn’t actually exist. The NFL declined to fine Seattle Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz during their wild-card matchup last Sunday.
The hit came on the ninth play of the game, and shortly after Wentz self-reported his concussion symptoms and was removed from the game. He did not return, and backup QB Josh McCown was pressed into service. The Eagles lost 17-9.
Here’s what that play looked like.
Carson Wentz was hurt on this play. No flag. During numerous replays there is no discussion about whether it should have been a penalty #SEAvsPHI pic.twitter.com/ie8VBD0P2m
— Bad Sports Refs (@BadSportsRefs) January 5, 2020
Clowney’s hit on Wentz wasn’t flagged on the field, and after the game the officials stood by their decision and said that Wentz, who was diving to the ground, didn’t give himself up. However, Wentz was actually denied a first down back in Week 2 because the officials said that he’d given himself up by — you guessed it! — diving to the ground.
Back in Week 2, Carson Wentz dove for the goal line on a two-point attempt and was ruled short because he gave himself up. pic.twitter.com/dR7jDIIgTe
— Brandon Lee Gowton (@BrandonGowton) January 6, 2020
You would think that the NFL would choose one direction for its officiating, either to over-penalize or under-penalize. As you can see here they’ve somehow chosen both, so congratulations to the NFL and its officials for forging a new path in sports incompetence.
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