The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, WI)
| November 21, 2002 |
Byline: Tom Silverstein
GREEN BAY, Wis. __ Brett Favre was fined $5,000 for his late hit on Minnesota defensive back Jack Brewer last Sunday and he was none too happy about the ruling.
The Green Bay Packers' quarterback said he had not seen the letter from the National Football League informing him of the punishment, but a league spokesman confirmed he had been fined.
There is an official appeals process and Favre said he fully intends to use it.
"It's ridiculous is what it is," Favre said. "All the times people aren't fined for hitting me. C'mon, it wasn't a defenseless player. I didn't hit him in the head. I dove. I didn't know he was tackled. Was he out of bounds? Yeah, he was out of bounds. It wasn't premeditated or anything like that."
Brewer intercepted Favre near the goal-line and returned the ball 23 yards before being run out of bounds by receiver Javon Walker. Shortly after Brewer crossed the boundary, Favre made contact with him, throwing his left shoulder into Brewer's side.
The hit didn't cause Brewer to tumble to the ground, but it clearly happened after Brewer was out of bounds, prompting the officials to penalize Favre 15 yards for unnecessary roughness.