One of the most talked about plays from Saturday’s Patriots-Bengals game has been Patriots quarterback Mac Jones cutting Bengals cornerback Eli Apple during what appeared to be a fumble recovery play in the fourth quarter. The hit, which wasn’t flagged at the time, was labeled as a ‘dirty play’ by some, and it was reported Sunday night that the NFL was “reviewing” the play for potential discipline.
Just over 24 hours later, the league has reportedly come to a decision. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio is reporting Jones will be fined $11,139 for the play.
I’d argue this is worthy of a suspension and a big fine from Mac Jones.
— Blake Jewell (@BlakeJewellNFL) December 25, 2022
Incredibly dirty. pic.twitter.com/IhPh0m8r8KIn his report, Florio writes “it [the low block] happened after a change of possession; by rule, all blocks below the waist are a violation at that point.” Florio added the official letter informing Jones of the fine is expected to be delivered “on Tuesday or Wednesday.”
The hit marred what was otherwise one of Jones’ best halves of football this season. In total, he finished the game completing 21 of his 33 pass attempts for 240 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
This is the second time Jones has been fined this month. He was docked $10,609 in early December for what was described as a ‘taunting’ play against the Buffalo Bills, when he tossed a football in frustration and hit a defender.
Mac Jones’ 2022 game log
Pass Rush Date Week Opp Result GS Cmp Att Cmp% Yds TD Int Rate Sk Att Yds TD 2022-09-11 1 @ MIA L 7-20 * 21 30 70.00 213 1 1 87.2 2 2 0 0 2022-09-18 2 @ PIT W 17-14 * 21 35 60.00 252 1 1 79.7 0 7 6 0 2022-09-25 3 BAL L 26-37 * 22 32 68.75 321 0 3 62.1 3 5 31 1 2022-10-02 4 @ GNB L 24-27 DNP 2022-10-09 5 DET W 29-0 DNP 2022-10-16 6 @ CLE W 38-15 DNP 2022-10-24 7 CHI L 14-33 * 3 6 50.00 13 0 1 16.7 0 3 24 0 2022-10-30 8 @ NYJ W 22-17 * 24 35 68.57 194 1 1 79.9 6 7 19 0 2022-11-06 9 IND W 26-3 * 20 30 66.67 147 1 0 89.2 4 1 -2 0 2022-11-20 11 NYJ W 10-3 * 23 27 85.19 246 0 0 104.6 6 2 3 0 2022-11-24 12 @ MIN L 26-33 * 28 39 71.79 382 2 0 119.8 3 0 0 0 2022-12-01 13 BUF L 10-24 * 22 36 61.11 195 1 0 84.8 1 3 7 0 2022-12-12 14 @ ARI W 27-13 * 24 35 68.57 235 0 1 75.3 1 5 -1 0 2022-12-18 15 @ LVR L 24-30 * 13 31 41.94 112 0 0 52.1 0 4 10 0 2022-12-24 16 CIN L 18-22 * 21 33 63.64 240 2 0 105.6 4 1 -1 0 Total 5-7-0 242 369 65.58 2550 9 8 84.6 30 40 96 1 Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.
