November 1st, 2007 
Stephen Rhodes 
Posted in 
One would suspect that a high-profile skill position player on a NFL team would garner attention for an on-the-field incident – someone like a QB, a WR – you get my meaning. But in what has to be a first, and as reported by the Sacramento Bee, San Francisco 49ers placekicker Joe Nedney has been fined $7,500 by the league for raising his middle finger during the 49ers’ loss to the New Orleans Saints last Sunday.
Nedney said that he was very unhappy that his third-quarter kickoff went out of bounds, giving the Saints the ball at their own 40-yard line. He reacted by tossing the tee, then throwing his helmet and kicking the bench. When he sat down, a fan apparently said something that set Nedney off and prompted the middle-finger “salute”. Nedney claimed it was meant to be subtle, but after some fans said, “Ooooh”, he realized that it was not.
Nedney told the Bee before practice, “You’re supposed to have the thickest skin on the team — kickers and quarterbacks. Apparently, I need to go out and buy some skin-thickening cream.” Nedney also added that the fine specifically mentioned the league’s new conduct policy, which is designed to reduce “undesirable behavior”.
