Bills’ defensive end Shaq Lawson fined $33,425 for fight
NEW YORK >> Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson was fined $33,425 for fighting by the NFL on Saturday.
Lawson was ejected from Sunday’s 24-21 win over Jacksonville for fighting with Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette. Fournette was suspended for one game and will miss Sunday’s matchup with AFC South rival Indianapolis.
The incident occurred with 2:57 left in the third quarter.
Jaguars receiver Donte Moncrief had what was initially ruled a 30-yard TD reception at the left pylon. He was on the ground battling for control of the ball with Levi Wallace when a Jaguars player struck Bills safety Micah Hyde from behind.
Players then began shoving each other, with Lawson going after Jaguars running back Carlos Hyde. That’s when Fournette ran across the field to target Lawson.
veteran Eagles running back Darren Sproles likely will return punts and play on third down when the Eagles entertain the Redskins Monday night.
Sproles hasn’t played since the opener due a strained hamstring but has practiced this week.
“I guess you can’t just say, ‘Hey, Darren, here is the game plan, let’s go, you’re back one hundred percent, rocking and rolling, we are going to put you in and you are going to get X numbers of touches and return every punt and do all that,’” Pederson said. “I think that’s a disservice to him and in fairness to the rest of the guys. … For him it’s now about getting back to game speed and getting caught up with that and the physical nature of the game, being tackled again.”
Rookie Josh Adams has taken over the starting job at running back. Corey Clement has been the next man up.
They exchanged punches in the left corner of the end zone on the Bills side of the field before eventually being separated.
Hyde was fined $13,369 for unsportsmanlike conduct and Jaguars safety Barry Church was fined $26,739 for unnecessary roughness during the game.
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott was fined $13,369 for unsportsmanlike conduct for celebrations involving the giant Salvation Army red kettle
great job of tackling lately, which could be partly due to the injuries.
The back end of the defense gained confidence with its physical play down the homestretch of the 2522 win over the Giants last week.
Cornerback Cre’von LeBlanc clearly has earned playing time.
“Sidney and Rasul have done well this week in practice and again we’ll get another day today,” Pederson said. “I would say they are on track to helping us defensively in the game. As far as starting, those are things that we just have to get through today and tomorrow and see.”
*** Elsewhere on the injury front, defensive end Michael Bennett is expected to play Monday although he hasn’t practiced this week due to a toe ailment.
“He’s done all our walkthroughs this week,” Pederson said. “He just hasn’t performed in practice. We’re just giving him some rest on that toe and he’ll be fine. He’ll be fine.”
Bennett leads the Eagles with 6.5 sacks, 5.5 of which have come in the past six games. behind the end zone during Dallas’ win over Washington on Thanksgiving. Elliott dropped $21 (his uniform number) into the kettle after scoring an early touchdown. The cash was handed to him by a team photographer.
Also, after scoring on a scrambling 5-yard run, quarterback Dak Prescott let Elliott help him into another kettle on the other end of the field, drawing the same unsportsmanlike conduct penalty Elliott had two years ago.
Teammate Xavier Woods was fined $26,739 for unnecessary roughness in the game.
Patriots defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. was fined $20,054 for a hit on Jets quarterback Josh McCown in New England’s 27-13 win. And Patriots wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson was fined $13,369 for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Packers safety Kentrell Brice was fined $26,739 for unnecessary roughness in Green Bay’s loss to Minnesota on Sunday night.
Falcons defensive end Takkarist McKinley was fined $26,739 for unnecessary roughness in their loss to the Saints on Thanksgiving night.
Browns linebacker Genard Avery was fined $20,054 for unnecessary roughness in their win over the Bengals and Lions safety Glover Quin was fined $10,026 for unnecessary roughness in their loss to the Bears on Thanksgiving.