NFL Reissues $25K Fine to Texans’ Joe Mixon for Comments About Game Officials — After He Was Mistakenly Fined for Teammate’s Remarks

NFL Fines Houston Texans’ Joe Mixon $25K for Criticizing Game Officials

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon has found himself in hot water with the NFL, as the league recently issued him a $25,000 fine. The fine was a result of comments Mixon made following the Texans’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on January 18th, where they were defeated 23-14.

In a statement that stirred controversy, Mixon criticised the game officials, questioning their fairness by saying, “Why play the game if every 50/50 call goes with Chiefs. These officials are trash and bias.” ESPN initially reported that Mixon was fined for these remarks.

However, it was later revealed that the statement was actually made by former NFL player T.J. Houshmandzadeh in a post on X. Mixon was mistakenly attributed to the comments, leading to a case of mistaken identity.

According to CBS Sports, the mix-up occurred after a Sports Illustrated article titled, “Look: Joe Mixon calls out officials after Chiefs’ win over Texans,” was published, featuring Houshmandzadeh’s X post. Despite the error being rectified, the NFL still imposed a $25,000 fine on Mixon for different comments he had made about the game.

In response to the second fine, Mixon took to social media to express his frustration with the NFL’s decision-making. He wrote, “So let me get this straight NFL fines me 25k for something I didn’t even say. Call them out for it, and their response was fine me AGAIN for something that’s not even a violation without even rescinding the first one. Where’s the accountability? Just respect the players.”

Peter Schaffer, Mixon’s agent, criticised the NFL’s handling of the situation, stating that they are now facing a total fine of $50,000. The NFL failed to rescind the initial fine, leading to confusion and further frustration for Mixon and his team.

Schaffer further commented, “They didn’t say in this [second] letter, ‘We hereby rescind the original letter.’ They just said, ‘Here’s another letter.’ So now we have two letters, two fines, for two different quotes. One he didn’t say. One he doesn’t publicly criticize the officiating [by] the game officials. He’s criticizing his own players.”

The incident has raised questions about the accountability and transparency of the NFL’s fine system, with Mixon and his team considering legal recourse to challenge the decision. As the saga unfolds, the football community waits to see how this situation will be resolved and what implications it may have for player freedom of expression and criticism within the league.