Jacksonville Jaguars rookie Michael Lockley has been fined by the NFL $20,000 for his hit on New England Patriots wide receiver Taylor Price last Thursday night. I thought the hit was questionable, but no $20,000 fine worth. Talk about "Welcome to the NFL". Fortunately for Lockley, he may not actually have to pay the fine. According to Mark Long of the AP and Tania Ganguli of the Florida Times-Union via twitter, Lockley may not have to pay the fine if he doesn't make the final roster.
So... does Mike Lockley find himself rooting for "What sucks less"? Is it better to not make the team or to make the team and get hit for $20,000? Lockley is an undrafted free agent, and with a cap being put on what they can be paid in signing bonuses I doubt he'd even make $20,000 through the course of the preseason. In situations like this, the initial fine should be a percentage of salary, in my personal opinion.
UPDATE: According to Ganguli, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello states if a player is fined, gets cut before regular season and doesn't make an NFL roster, the league can't collect the fine money. If the player is picked up by another team and makes their roster, the fine will follow the player however.