The Seattle Seahawks suffered their first loss of the season on Monday, and second-year running back Zach Charbonnet received the first fine of his NFL career.
According to the league’s weekly fines report, Charbonnet was fined $45,020 for illegally lowering his helmet to make contact with Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph. The incident occurred during the first play of the second half of Seattle’s 42-29 defeat at Ford Field. In the play, the Seahawks used a two-back formation with Kenneth Walker carrying the ball and Charbonnet blocking.
The Charbonnet "lowering the helmet" penalty from both All-22 angles, at 0.5 speed.
By rule, I think this is a penalty. But the NFL has shown zero consistency applying this rule ever since it was implemented in 2018. pic.twitter.com/xtnZ5Xd591
— Mookie Alexander (@mookiealexander) October 5, 2024
The NFL rulebook classifies illegal helmet use as when a player lowers their head to make forcible contact with an opponent. Typically, a first-time offense carries a fine of $22,511, and a second offense results in a $45,020 fine. There is no record of Charbonnet being previously fined, which raises questions as to why his penalty was so steep. It’s possible that Charbonnet received a warning in place of a fine for a previous violation.
The NFL fined #Lions S Brian Branch $10,128 for unnecessary roughness/use of helmet last week on the play that put Branch and #Cardinals TE Trey McBride in concussion protocol.
Branch was fined another $10,128 for a separate incident in the game. pic.twitter.com/YZhcB0HkJM
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 28, 2024
Charbonnet can appeal the fine, with the case reviewed by appeals officers, including former NFL players like Derrick Brooks and Kevin Mawae. Although the “lowering the helmet” rule, introduced in 2018 and expanded in 2023, is rarely flagged during games, fines are often issued after the fact. Interestingly, Lions safety Brian Branch was fined the previous week for the same infraction, while Cardinals tight end Trey McBride avoided a penalty for a similar violation.
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