JJ Watt has strong response to Amon-Ra St. Brown’s hefty fine

Jan 4, 2020; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) warms up before the AFC Wild Card NFL Playoff game against the Buffalo Bills at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown was recently fined for what looked like a fairly standard block, and JJ Watt had a strong reaction to the NFL’s decision.

St. Brown was fined $43,709 for a block he made on a running play during his Chicago Bears’ loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 11. The NFL determined that St. Brown lowered his head to initiate contact, which led to the fine.

Watt shared a video of the block on social media Sunday. The former Defensive Player of the Year blasted the NFL for what he referred to as stealing money.

Here we go again…

General rule of thumb:
If you have to watch the video multiple times to try figuring out which person did something wrong and you still can’t figure it out, we probably shouldn’t be taking $43,709 from someone.

This. Is. Stealing. Money.

🤦🏼‍♂️ https://t.co/zuv45Lzj8t

— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) November 26, 2023

“Here we go again … General rule of thumb: If you have to watch the video multiple times to try figuring out which person did something wrong and you still can’t figure it out, we probably shouldn’t be taking $43,709 from someone. This. Is. Stealing. Money,” Watt wrote.

Watt is right that you have to watch the clip several times before you can even see where the alleged infraction occurs. Almost everyone would agree that St. Brown was just throwing a normal block on a defensive back. The defender didn’t even seem to have any problem with the hit.

Considering there was not even a flag on the play, it seems like the NFL was looking for a reason to hand down a fine.