HOUSTON — The NFL has made it official: Texans wide receiver Jaylin Noel will pay $8,165 for a facemask foul he committed after a catch in Houston's 26-3 rout of the Tennessee Titans in Week 5.
The flag came in the second quarter. Noel hauled in a pass from C.J. Stroud on second-and-10 for a 9-yard pickup, but the penalty wiped out the gain and pushed the Texans from the Tennessee 22 back to the 38, turning a short-yardage chance into first-and-17.
The amount is lighter than it could have been. League schedules allow a first facemask fine of up to $11,941 and up to $17,911 for a repeat offense, so Noel was docked roughly two-thirds of the first-offense maximum. No other Houston player was fined for the game, though the league's weekly film review can punish plays that drew no flag.
Tennessee did not escape. Titans cornerback Micah Robinson was fined $5,583 for unnecessary roughness on a hip-drop tackle during a first-quarter kickoff that Noel returned. The infraction also counts as one strike under the league and players union policy announced in August; two more in the same category would bring a one-game suspension.
Otherwise it was a productive afternoon for the second-year receiver out of Iowa State, who caught five passes for 41 yards and a touchdown in the Texans' first win of the season. His role could narrow soon with Marvin Harrison Jr. now on the roster after an in-season trade, joining Nico Collins at the top of the receiver group.
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