The Atlanta Falcons ended the season with an 8-9 record after losing a 44-38 overtime thriller to the Carolina Panthers in Week 18. Atlanta did not advance to the playoffs under Raheem Morris' first year as head coach.
Despite that, the league is dishing out fines for certain penalties and hits that occurred in Week 18. One that stood out on Saturday was a controversial fine on Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
Early in the fourth quarter, Robinson was given the ball up the middle where he lowered his head before colliding with a Panthers defender. Referees flagged the 22-year-old running back for unnecessary roughness on the play.
The league officially fined Robinson $22,511 for using his helmet on that unnecessary roughness call, according to Tom Pelissero of The NFL Network. The NFL's decision led to some backlash from sports fans, as many believe the incident was not worthy of a fine.
Most fans were floored by Robinson's fine. Some joked that the league may switch to flag football soon, while others criticized the NFL for the fines they've dealt throughout the entire season.
"NFL is [a] joke," said one individual.
Another sports fan asked, "So he was fined for playing football? Got it."
"Flag football gonna be proposed soon," claimed a user.
This person stated, "Unnecessary roughness fines are the greatest side hustle in the world."
"NO FUN LEAGUE," exclaimed another individual.
Payments for fines are collected by the league but are then distributed to the Professional Athletes Association and the NFL Foundation. The Professional Athletes Association supports former players in need. Meanwhile, the NFL Foundation helps with the health and safety of all athletes at all levels, including youth leagues.
So, at the very least, the fine money is going to a good cause. Regardless, many sports fans seemingly don't like seeing plays like Robinson's receive a fine.
The Falcons running back finished the season with the third most rushing yards on the season. Robinson proved to be one of the elite talents in the backfield after finishing with 1,456 rushing yards and 15 total touchdowns while averaging 4.8 yards per attempt.
