Former Green Bay Packers tight end Za’Darius Smith was fined by the NFL for an unjustifiably gritty passing violation against quarterback Jordan Love in Week 14 of the 2024 season.
According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissarothe league fined Smith – now a member of the Detroit Lions – $6,722 for punching Love in the head or neck during the first half of Detroit’s victory at Ford Field.
The violation is obvious on replay. Love, under pressure, switched to the left side and got the ball, but Smith ran up as he was throwing and obviously made contact with Love’s head. No penalty was called, and the Packers ultimately got the ball back from near midfield. The penalty is for the NFL to admit to not answering the call.
Before the gritty patch, Smith — who played for Green Bay from 2019-2021 — got plenty of love in the first game back from the restart.
The Lions defeated the Packers 34-31 to strengthen their position in the NFC North. The Packers dropped to 9-4 and are now all but out of the division race.
Lions offensive lineman Christian Mahogany was also fined $4,609 for unnecessarily roughing his mask on his face delayed in the first quarter.
No Packers players were fined in Week 14. The Packers haven’t had a player fined for game day liability since Week 7 (Ben Sims).
