NFL Announces Punishment for Steelers Player After Rule Violation in Preseason Finale Against Bills

Doneiko Slaughter had barely settled into his new spot on the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ practice squad before the NFL relayed some harsh news. The cornerback drew an unsportsmanlike conduct flag for taunting in the second quarter of the Steelers’ preseason finale against the Buffalo Bills, and it just became an expensive lesson in how fast the league notices.

Slaughter will have to pay $4,917 for that flag, according to the NFL. He became the only Steeler player penalized by the NFL across all three preseason games.

He had also picked up an unnecessary roughness flag in the preseason opener against the Packers, part of a night where discipline was the real story for Pittsburgh. The Steelers got flagged seven times for 85 yards by halftime, and that kind of sloppiness is the last thing a brand new coaching staff wants to see this early on.

Owner Art Rooney II wasn’t shy about it either, telling KDKA during halftime of the Steelers’ first preseason standoff with the Packers.

 “Too many penalties so far. That’s one thing we’ve gotta clean up,” he said.

He said that right after linebacker Cole Holcomb hit Packers quarterback Ty’Rod Taylor well after Taylor had already slid, drawing a personal foul that a veteran shouldn’t be picking up. Not long after, Slaughter added his own unnecessary roughness call to the pile, handing Green Bay some free yards.

Head coach Mike McCarthy was on the same page.

“The post-whistle stuff, we’ve had a couple there that we can’t have,” he said at the break. After the game, he didn’t soften it much either.

“The obvious negative is the penalties are way too high, the personal fouls. It’s important for us to be extremely accountable.”

It’s a rough stretch for a guy still on the fringes of the roster. Slaughter joined Pittsburgh on a reserve futures deal over the winter after going undrafted out of Arkansas and starting his career with the Tennessee Vols, where he racked up 66 solo tackles and three sacks over four seasons.

He didn’t make the 53-man roster when cuts came down, but the Steelers signed him on the practice squad. Now, he hasn’t even played a game in the regular season, but he will have to cough up more than $4,000 for rough play.

Had the flag occurred in the regular season, he might have had to pay a fine worth five figures. That is also the range of weekly pay for players on the practice squad.

It’s worth noting this isn’t really how Pittsburgh usually operates. Last season, the Steelers were actually one of the more disciplined teams in the league, finishing with the seventh fewest offensive penalties and the third fewest on defense, according to Sporting Charts.

Those kinds of numbers can be a bit shaky depending on how you slice them, but they still paint a fair picture, and the hope heading into the new season is that they can get back to that.

Slaughter was waived by the Steelers as part of their roster cuts before being brought back to the practice squad. Despite the penalties, he proved to be a worthy player, having taken the second-most snaps at cornerback (104) during the preseason slate.

Slaughter wasn’t the only one to hear from the league office this week. Bills safety Jalon Kilgore got hit with a $5,560 fine for use of the helmet; Colts cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt was docked $7,791 for striking, kicking, tripping, or kneeing an opponent; Vikings running back Jermar Jefferson lost $5,583 over a facemask, and Saints linebacker Danny Stutsman was fined $7,011, also for helmet use.

Add it all up, and the message is pretty clear. The NFL isn’t waiting around for Week 1 to start policing how the game gets played.

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