New Orleans Saints defensive tackle David Onyemata is learning a very tough lesson after being hit with two roughing the passer penalties in Week 1.
The third-year player only makes $630,000 all year long, which breaks down to just over $37,000 per game. By NFL standards, he’s dirt cheap.
One thing that isn’t cheap is the fine the NFL just levied against Onyemata for those two penalties.
The first occurred in the third quarter of last Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Onyemata was penalized over that new, controversial rule that states defenders cannot use their body weight to land on the quarterback. The second was helmet-to-helmet hit against Ryan Fitzpatrick.
According to NOLA.com, the NFL fined Onyemata $20,054 for each foul for a total of $40,108.
Yeah, that’s more than what he makes per week, which is a brutal penalty to levy against a player who’s just out there giving his all to the game he loves.