Allen Lazard was hit with a bad fine
Allen Lazard made a great play against the Miami Dolphins. The Green Bay Packers wide receiver blocked his intended target on a run play and wound up taking out three Dolphins defenders in the process. Lazard pointed and counted the Dolphins defenders he made look silly on the block. The NFL punished him for it.
Lazard was fined $10,609 for evidently “taunting” the Dolphins’ defenders with his pointer finger. It was a ridiculous gripe the NFL decided to heap wrath upon. What makes it worse, the NFL had league social media accounts using the play for promotional material. In a way, they’re promoting those types of acts to the younger football audience. Lazard spoke out about how dumb the NFL is on the taunting issue.
According to Bill Huber with Packer Central, Lazard commented on the hypocrisy of the fine:
Told by this reporter that it seemed stupid, Lazard said, “I think it doesn’t make sense to highlight a play and to use it on your social-media platforms to give it more attention but also to have a negative connotation. It’s very contradictory.” …
“They love it because it gives the NFL more attention and the fans enjoy it but they somehow don’t condone it,” Lazard said. “It’s very contradictory.”
Allen Lazard is absolutely correct about how inconsistent this rule is by the NFL. Players should be allowed to show emotion after making a good play. Players should be left alone if they aren’t getting in their opponent’s face and trying to start a fight. Lazard wasn’t trying to get into a one-on-one altercation with those defensive linemen; he just wanted to have a little fun after making a great block.
