George Kittle may have, in one fell swoop, ignited a fire that’s been dormant for a couple of decades.
San Francisco beat Dallas soundly, 42-10. The 49ers’ tight end, who wore a T-shirt that read, “F— Dallas” under his uniform Sunday during the 49ers’ game against the Cowboys and held it up at one point for all to see, is likely to be fined by the league any day for said shirt.
Kittle said midweek that he’s expecting a fine, isn’t worried about it, and on Thursday said he’d do it again (Niners’ Kittle expects fine, says Cowboys T-shirt taunt worth it).
Friday, Kittle got that fine, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, in the form of $13,659 (Source – 49ers’ George Kittle fined over $13K for Cowboys T-shirt taunt ).
“Probably to get a fine,” Kittle said. “I wore a personalized T-shirt, maybe an inappropriate word. So it is what it is. It was a decision I made. If they want to fine me, they fine me.”
Kittle, though, said Thursday even with a fine, he might just be a repeat offender.
“One hundred percent,” Kittle said. “I’d do it again.”
Kittle, a noted pro wrestling fan, sometimes goes over the top, and apparently can’t help himself. And the 49ers are used to his playful behavior.
“[It’s] just Kittle, WWE stuff, entertainment,” Niners coach Kyle Shanahan said. “Not really much, just smiled at it.”
The team Kittle messed with is apparently split on the shirt.
On his podcast early this week, Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons accused Kittle of “making it personal.”
But safety Jayron Kearse apparently disagreed. Asked about the shirt, Kearse said, “I don’t have a problem with nothing he did. If we do our job and keep him out of the end zone, he wouldn’t have been able to do it.”
San Francisco (5-0) visits Cleveland (2-2) on Sunday, with the Browns coming off a bye, though possibly without starting quarterback DeShaun Watson. Dallas (3-2) visits the Los Angeles Chargers (2-2) at SoFi Stadium in L.A.
