NFL is clearly picking on Bucs veteran just a couple of days before key matchup against Lions
The NFL can be very silly, sometimes.
Kindle Vildor made one of the biggest plays of the game during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Week 6 win over the San Francisco 49ers, but the NFL is clearly picking on him after fining him more than $12k on Saturday.
Vildor was fined for “unnecessary roughness” that included “striking/kicking/tripping/kneeing” an opponent in the fourth quarter. But as you can see below, the hit he put on 49ers wide receiver Kendrick Bourne is pretty innocuous, at the end of the day:
NFL fines continue to reek of inconsistency
Frankly, this is a weird call. As you can see below, Tennessee Titans star defender Jeffery “Big Jeff” Simmons was fined for “unnecessary roughness” that includes “striking/kicking/tripping/kneeing” an opponent in Week 6, but it’s clear that he tried to trip Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty on this play with under 10 minutes to go in the first quarter:
I’m sorry, but what is the message the NFL is trying to send, here? Vildor’s tackle, while he went low, is fine and is rarely flagged and/or fined. It almost seems like a petty move by the NFL, which would be considered ironic when relaying the fact we’re talking about a billion dollar business, here.
Hopefully this doesn’t bleed onto the field and makes Bucs defenders second-guess their angles when making tackles. If that turns out to be the case then we could easily see defenders miss tackles that lead to big plays when really, they shouldn’t be missing them but are because of the Eye in the Sky that’s becoming NFL fines.
