The Detroit Lions pulled off a win over arch rival the Green Bay Packers, with a 34-31 final score, on December 5 during a high-profile Thursday Night Football game. While a win is always a great thing, some Lions players are now paying the price.
Literally, they’re paying the price. During the game, one Lions player had an incident with Packers quarterback Jordan Love that’s costing him in the form of a hefty NFL fine.
Lions’ Za’Darius Smith Has to Pay Up
During the game, there was a play in which defensive end Za’Darius Smith had a hit to the head of Love. At the time, no penalty flag was called on the play, but Smith still didn’t come out of it without punishment.
On Saturday, December 14, the NFL announced that they would fine Smith $6,722 for the play. They labeled it “roughing the passer” with a blow to the head and neck area.
Smith was actually with the Packers before joining the Lions and played a total of three seasons with them.
Lions rookie Christian Mahogany was also fined on Saturday. He has to pay $4,609 for grabbing a facemask on one of his three offensive snaps in the matchup.
While Smith and Mahogany are likely not happy about having to pay up, it could be worse. The largest fines of the week handed out by the NFL are each worth $45,020. Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ Rachaad White has to pay that steep price for an unnecessary roughness, use of the helmet, play, and Kansas City Chiefs‘ Isiah Pacheco has to pay the same amount for the same offense.
As for the Lions’ win over Green Bay, it was crucial to help keep the Lions far apart from the Packers in the race to the top of the NFC North. Now, the Lions’ main concern in the division is the Minnesota Vikings, who they’ll face on January 5 at home.
Dan Campbell Says Green Bay Was a ‘Big Game Against a Really Good Opponent’
While the Green Bay game was important, the Lions’ game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, December 15, is just as crucial. That’s not lost on Dan Campbell. Speaking with press on Friday, December 13, Campbell talked about the Bills and how they’re one of the strongest teams on the Lions’ schedule this season.
“We know this is a big game, because it’s a really good opponent, and it’s the next one in front of us, but we just played a big game,” Campbell said, referring to the Packers. “Green Bay was – that’s a big game against a really good opponent. So, to me, this is just the next one, it’s the next big game. It’s not, ‘Oh this is going to bigger than the one we just played.’ That’s how I view it.”
Heading into the Bills game, quite a few members of the Detroit Lions are on injured reserve, including Alex Anzalone, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez and Jalen Reeves-Maybin. The team’s defense has been especially hit, and on Saturday, to try to prep for the game, they elevated two players to help support the linebacker spot in Abraham Beauplan and Jamal Adams.
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