Teair Tart Fined for Slapping Travis Kelce
Los Angeles Chargers defensive tackle Teair Tart has been fined by the NFL for slapping Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce during the Chargers’ 27-21 Week 1 victory in Sao Paulo, Brazil. A source revealed the information. According to NFL rules, the fine for a first offense of aggression is $12,172. The league announces the fines on Saturday afternoons. Following a play in the third quarter, Kelce shoved Tart, who responded by slapping Kelce’s helmet, resulting in a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. Rules analyst Terry McAulay explained on the YouTube broadcast that Tart was not ejected because he made contact with an open hand, which does not warrant disqualification. A closed fist, or a punch, would have resulted in Tart’s ejection. Tart signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Chargers in the offseason, and the team paid him a $2 million bonus before offseason activities. Tart also receives a $58,000 bonus, in addition to his guaranteed salary, for each regular season game he is active for.After the incident, Tart posted on Instagram, apparently referring to Kelce and his fiancée, singer Taylor Swift. Tart posted a photo collage, including a video with a scene from a movie where a man slaps another with hands covered in white powder. Tart’s caption read: “I’m too swift with that, even in Brazil.” In response to the post, commenters flooded Tart’s Instagram account with racist images. The Chargers will face the Chiefs again in Week 15 (1 p.m. ET, CBS).I don’t understand that rule. I guess it’s open hand, fist, whatever, I don’t know. I don’t know what their decision was on it. But he definitely took a pretty good shot to the head, whether it was open hand or closed fist.
Andy Reid, Kansas City coach
