Steelers RB Jaylen Warren perplexed by amount of fines he's receiving from NFL
At 5-foot-8 and 215 pounds, running back Jaylen Warren realizes he is at a significant size disadvantage when trying to block hard-charging pass rushers.
That is part of his job description, however, as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ third-down specialist, and he takes pride in his blocking ability.
It’s getting costly, though.
For the second time this season, Warren received a heavy fine for what the NFL deemed unnecessary roughness. He was docked $48,556 for lowering his helmet to initiate contact with Los Angeles Rams pass rusher Michael Hoecht in Week 7.
“I don’t know how I’m supposed to hit dudes that are 350 pounds and 2 feet taller than me,” Warren said Tuesday. “I can’t stand my ground and punch them; they are going to run me over. So I try to enforce my hitting. It’s getting to the point where it’s hurting me.”
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In Week 2, Warren was fined $48,333 for lowering his helmet while trying to ward off a Cleveland Browns tackler near the sideline.
“I don’t know what they want me to do,” Warren said. “I’m not the type of guy who is going to run out of bounds. I’m going to fight for everything I get.”
Warren’s fines are so hefty because he is viewed as a repeat offender. He said he was fined twice last season as well.
He said he got the initial fine reduced upon appeal, but not to his satisfaction.
“It went to $39,000, if you want to call that a win,” he said. “I call that a loss.”
A former undrafted free agent, Warren has a base salary of $870,000 this season. After taxes, the amount of each fine he has received has been the equivalent of two game checks.
“If I got fined $2,000, I’d be (ticked) too,” he said. “Fifty thousand dollars is crazy. That’s a whole car. It’s money I could be giving to my family.”
Outside linebacker T.J. Watt, the team’s highest-paid player with a $20 million base salary, empathizes with his teammate.
“I think it’s extremely egregious the amount of money a guy like that is being fined,” he said. “It’s ridiculous.”
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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