Report: Jimmy Garoppolo Fined $7K For Throwing Ball Into Stands At End of Week 17 Win
Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers were idle last week during the NFL's Wild-Card weekend, a reward for their regular-season performance. But one of Garoppolo's final acts of the season reportedly turned out to be costly.
Garoppolo threw a football into the stands after running the clock out in San Francisco's 26-21 victory over the Seahawks to win the division and clinch home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. But according to NBC Sports' Matt Maiocco, the NFL fined the 49ers' QB $7,017 for the action.
The league views the act of throwing a football into the stands as a safety issue.
The football was eventually corralled by Matt Pinelli, a 19-year-old fan that admitted to shoving a Seahawks fan before securing the ball.
After the game, Garoppolo said he would gladly sign it for the 49ers fan and discussed what led to the action in the first place.
"I looked for the ref initially, but no one was around me," the QB said. "So I was like ... I'm just going to throw this thing."
It was the final ball used in a regular-season game this decade, and in the first 100 years of the NFL.
The move won't hurt his pockets too much, however, as last February, Garoppolo signed a five-year, $137.5 million extension with the 49ers. He also stands to take home some additional playoff bonuses depending on how San Francisco performs in the coming weeks.
The No. 1 49ers are back in action Saturday against the No. 6 Vikings. Kickoff is set for 4:35 p.m. ET.