Report: Golden Tate fined for hit on Dallas’ Sean Lee
Sep 19, 2012, 3:46 PM | Updated: 3:47 pm
By Brady Henderson
Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate hoped he wouldn’t be fined for the crushing block he threw on Sunday, telling 97.3 KIRO FM the next day that he thought his hit on Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee was legal.
The NFL apparently saw it differently.
Tate was fined $21,000 on Wednesday, according to a report from Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
Tate’s hit came in the fourth quarter of Seattle’s 27-7 win when he peeled back and delivered the block on Lee, who wasn’t looking at Tate while pursuing a scrambling Russell Wilson. The hit sent Lee into the air and onto his back. Lee left the game but returned after being examined by Dallas’ medical staff.
Tate wasn’t penalized on the play, but he was likely fined because the crown of his helmet hit Lee in the upper chest and chin. Lee was considered defenseless because he wasn’t looking at Tate, and the NFL prohibits such hits on defenseless players.
Tate told “The Dori Monson Show” on Monday that he wasn’t trying to hurt Lee and that he was glad to see Lee return to the game a few plays later.
