As we explained in the story about Campbell’s penalty, there is more to concern than just fines for players who make hip-drop tackles. A hip-drop tackle is one of five fouls considered “major,” and will result in a one-game penalty if repeated a total of three times, according to an NFL rule implemented this year. Other fouls that fall under this category are the horse collar tackle, launching, hitting a defenseless player, and a blindside block.
Players who commit three offenses in any of these categories in one season will be suspended for one game. Players who commit only one violation will receive 50 percent of their fine back at the end of the season.
As for the hip-drop tackle, here’s the video of Wonnum’s penalty, which is clearly a foul:
The three parts of a hip-drop tackle are: grab the runner with both hands, unweight them by twisting their body around, then land on the player’s legs below the knee. Wonnum clearly does all three of those things with Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett. But like the Campbell foul last week, there was no penalty flag throw in the play live.
No other Lions players were fined for the Cardinals game, but Cardinals running back Elijah Higgins was fined $20,411 for using his helmet.