There will certainly be some question as to whether Pittsburgh Steelers safety Mike Mitchell got off light after the dirty hit he put on Alex Smith last week.
The NFL has reportedly fined Mitchell $48,620, deciding against suspending a safety that’s been seen as a dirty player throughout his nine-year NFL career.
NFL fined Steelers’ safety Mike Mitchell $48,620 for his late hit on Chiefs QB Alex Smith, per source. He is appealing.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 19, 2017
The play in question saw Mitchell go low to the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback’s knee in the second half of Pittsburgh’s win on Sunday. To most objective observers, it should have led to a suspension for Mitchell.
There’s absolutely no room in the game of football for this. And fining a player that earns $5 million this season a total of less than $50,000 isn’t going to act like a deterrent.