How could he not know the NFL would fine him? When I saw the toss I told my wife he was going to get fined. Years ago it was only a $100 fine. But with larger contracts even $6000 is chump change.

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Maybe he was thinking it's a football of which you can find in any sporting goods store therefore has little to no value? I probably didn't know it was a fine when I was in my early 20's and focused on a plethora of much more important things.

Anyway, when I saw him throw the ball, I thought wow someone is gonna have a nice souvenir!

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It was none other than the Packers own Paul Hornung who threw the ball into the stands after he scored a touchdown that caused the No Fun League to start levying a fine for tossing a ball to the crowd at Lambeau.
Like WPR said back then it was $100.00.
When I saw him do it last Sunday, I said to myself, there goes $100.00.
Not knowing the fine had been mega increased.

Why does the NFL fine players for their behavior ?

The NFL is first and foremost a business . As a business they must maintain control over their employees ,
especially if it is a very public business like sports . Basic standards of behavior are approved by the owners and enforced by the commissioner that they set into place to run the league . The owners can't afford to loose control of the players , so their contracts and the CBA contain language that requires them to not act like jackasses . If they do then a progressive fine system reminds then to act like professionals .

You hit a man in his wallet and it leaves a lessen learned . The courts have used this form of punishment for centuries . Adams will pull back the next time a gets ready to toss another football into a crowd .

Do players like Cam Newton get fined when they walk over and hand a football to a child ? [sneaky]

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You'd think this sort of behavior would be a way to make MORE business... Jack up the prices of the endzone seats by like $10 a pop, everyone has a chance of getting a ball.

I heard once it was for fan safety.  No mad scramble in the stands to get the ball.  Not even sure the fan gets to keep the ball.

Probably.  Pittance fine (to his bank account) for a feel good story.  In this case I think the kid keeps the ball.  Difference between handing it to a specific person and tossing it at random into the crowd.  Probably falls under the player can keep the ball after a score (personal memoralbilia/trophycase) and dispense it at will.

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It is for the safety of the fans. If the NFL Inc allowed all players to chuck balls into the stands there is the possibility for the mad scramble like there was for Barry Bonds homers. If someone gets knocked down and stepped on maybe even hit their head on the seat in front of them some attorney will be on the phone to them before they get back to their car.

I don't know if anyone has done a study on it but it seems to me that there is more drinking at NFL games. There is certainly more drinking before the fans get into the stadium. That means the probability of poorer judgement increases and the odds of injury increase.

I don't know all the details of the incident only what people said later. A couple of years ago the guy who was sitting in the row behind me somehow ticked off the guy in the row behind him. Apparently he was drunk and so was his girlfriend. They were enjoying each others company more than they were enjoying the game. Everybody around them was pretty ticked off. The guy 2 rows back had enough and hit him and shoved him hard. The drunk had no control and fell landing on me. I in turn fell unto the two people in front of me. I had one hand for support on the back of each of them so the pile didn't go any further. The drunk was laying on my back. I was bent over with my chest on my knees and my arms on the good folks in front of me. My son grabbed him and threw him back towards his seat. He and his girlfriend were asked to leave. If I landed only on the woman in front of me I would have thrown her on to the next row down and it's possible that I would have followed her or at least landed on her seat.

While it is impossible to keep baseballs from going into the seats it is possible to keep footballs out. That is the difference between MLB's lack of concern and NFL's no fun rule.

On a side note does anyone here remember when the Packers didn't have nets behind the goal posts? The players tunnels where there and most of the FGs and extra points went into that area. The few balls that made it into the stands were given back by the fans. Usually the kid who catch the ball after the PAT would walk over the the edge of the stands and wait for the fans to pass the ball from row to to row and from fan to fan until it got back down to where he was waiting. On the rare occasion that one of the fans wanted to keep the ball as a souvenir, the ushers who remind the fan that they would ask him to leave if he didn't return the ball.

Second part of the comment, the rule states a player can hand the ball to a fan in the stands and not be fined. That underscores the concern for the safety of the fans. You won't see someone diving over 2 or 3 rows of people when the ball is placed into someone's hands.

Another no fun rule that is players can't jump into the stands. Lambeau Leap is grandfathered in as acceptable.

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No. Players can hand the ball to someone without being fined. As others have alluded/stated, the no throwing a ball into stands is done for crowd-control purposes to prevent multiple fans from fighting over the ball.


A bit of irony isn't it that a Passing league would rather you Hand the ball off? 🙂

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