The bank account of San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is a little lighter after the league fined him $25,000 for his sideline outburst directed toward an official during the team's last game against the Seattle Seahawks. It resulted in an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the coach.
Shanahan disagrees with the penalty and plans to appeal the fine.
As the head coach has explained, the penalty came as a result of rookie linebacker Fred Warner trying to recover his shoe, which came off on the play and ended up in the hands of Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who threw it out of reach. The Seattle offense rushed to the line of scrimmage in an attempt to get the play off and potentially force a penalty.
Shanahan would like the officials to address similar situations differently in the future.
"What I would like? For just common sense to prevail, and allow the guy to get his shoe that was thrown, and stop it," he told reporters on Wednesday.
"I thought it showed great conscientious thought by Russell to try to make sure the playing field was as safe and secure as possible for all players," #Seahawks coach Pete Carroll joked today of Russell Wilson's involvement in "shoe-gate." #49ers
— 49ers Webzone (@49erswebzone) December 12, 2018
Shanahan would love to see a player, like Warner, given time to recover his thrown shoe or allow time for a substitution. Shanahan nearly went into more detail on what he was told by the league but paused because he wasn't sure what he is allowed to reveal.
"I'm not trying to lose any more money," he added. "But I'd like something to be done about it, and I think they will next time."
Frustration from previous questionable calls in the game contributed to Shanahan's sideline outburst. He called Wilson's action and the resulting offsides penalty the "icing on the cake" and the "tipping point."
Kyle Shanahan with an eff you to the official. pic.twitter.com/Gn9jzq7zF0
— Melissa Jacobs (@thefootballgirl) December 2, 2018
"They told us there was nothing the player could do," Shanahan said. "That's what I told Fred. Next time, make it more obvious. We're going to get the penalty anyway, so hopefully, sit down and make it as obvious as you can. Hopefully, then common sense will prevail."