Either way, the penalty is severe. It will cost Payton a couple of million, I would guess.
This is a tough sport played by tough people. The harder you can hit on defense, is directly proportional to how much you money you make. Every team in the league is looking for the Nitschke or Butkus type linebacker. All of them, and they pay big bucks when they find them. If it"s flagrant, you throw out the offender for whatever is deemed an appropriate amount of time, and you fine him. They need to leave this call on the field.
