Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman has been fined $26,044 for his personal foul penalties in a Week 15 game against the New York Giants, according to Jarrett Bell of USA Today. Norman got into several scuffles with Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who was penalized twice in the game for unnecessary roughness as well.
Josh Norman fined $26K for battle with Odell Beckham Jr.
Norman didn’t receive a suspension like Odell Beckham Jr., but the Panthers cornerback also received a punishment from the league for his involvement in the feud.
Specifically, Bell reports that Norman received an $8,681 fine for grabbing a facemask and a $17,363 fine for striking in the head/neck area. Norman didn’t receive a facemask penalty during the game, so it is likely a fine for a violation that wasn’t called by officials.
Many thought Beckham should have been ejected from the game due to his repeated incidents, one of which included targeting the head of Norman with a helmet-to-helmet hit. Beckham was clearly the primary instigator for the fighting and received a one-game suspension from the NFL. He will appeal the suspension on Wednesday.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Norman will also appeal his punishment and plans to contend that he was provoked by Beckham and “facemasked him to get him away.”
Norman comes out of the unhinged but entertaining battle between the two looking better, but the NFL felt he did enough himself to warrant punishment. Norman did target Beckham on the ensuing play after the completely inexcusable helmet-to-helmet hit from the Giants receiver. Retaliation is never a good excuse for going after someone in the NFL, and the league wants to make this clear.
Norman didn’t receive a punishment for having a baseball bat on the field in pregame warmups, which reportedly set off Beckham and started the heated battle between the two Pro Bowl players. Panthers head coach Ron Rivera has since said that his players are no longer allowed to carry the bat on to the field anymore.
Following the game, Norman called for the NFL to take action against Beckham for his “malicious” attack. Because Beckham wasn’t ejected from the game, he was able to tie the game with a late touchdown over Norman. The game went down to the wire, but the Panthers remained undefeated thanks to a late field goal and clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Beckham finished the game with six catches for 76 yards and a touchdown. He was primarily covered by Norman and Cortland Finnegan, who he also fought with. The Giants fell to 6-8 after the loss and are now a game back of Washington in the NFC East race.
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SB Nation presents: Odell Beckham Jr. deserves suspension
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