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The Bengals left New England with a loss after a game that turned increasingly chippy as it progressed.
This week has been filled with drama regarding Vontaze Burfict, who has been fined $75,000 for his alleged actions in the game. He is appealing the massive fine.
Earlier in the week it was also reported that Julian Edelman was fined $9,115 for his facemask on Dre Kirkpatrick, which went unflagged in the game. It’s now being reported that two more of Edelman’s teammates, as well as Kirkpatrick himself have also been fined.
LeGarrette Blount, Rob Gronkowski and Kirkpatrick were all fined $9,115 for illegal actions during the game. Blount's fine was for unnecessary roughness, Gronkowski's was for taunting and Kirkpatrick’s (like Edelman's) was for a facemask.
LeGarrette Blount, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski were each fined $9,115 from last Sunday's game against the Bengals.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) October 21, 2016
Blount poked the eyes of Bengals safety Shawn Williams during the game, which the officials originally threw a flag for, but inexplicably - and really, this is among the most ridiculous actions by an official I’ve ever witnessed - picked it up and called no penalty for the eye gauge.
@MikeReiss here, does this look deliberate to you too? https://t.co/Rq9QKBA4Zo
— p w (@palewook) October 18, 2016
This is as deliberate as it gets. But, according to the Boston Globe, that’s not why he was fined, instead, it was for shoving Burfict and grabbing Williams by the facemask. The facemask grab was on the ground, and the reason Burfict was walking toward the middle of the pile (which in turn was the reason he got fined for the “stomp” he’s being accused of) and the shove from Blount came seconds after.
Here’s Gronk’s taunting:
And, here’s the play where Kirkpatrick and Edelman both had their hands on each other’s face mask.
The players could appeal, but, considering each of their actions were captured on film, it’s unlikely they would win. The money collected from NFL fines goes to charity.