NFL punishes one of the Dolphins' best players a few days after he suffers a season-ending injury

Miami Dolphins linebacker Jaelan Phillips has had a rough week thanks to the season-ending knee injury he suffered on Monday Night Football against the Tennessee Titans and things are a bit worse after the NFL's decision to fine him for a roughing the passer penalty in the first quarter of the game.

Phillips was flagged for going low on Titans quarterback Will Levis during the first offensive drive of the game. It was a big call, at the time, because it occurred on a 3rd and 8, but Levis was intercepted by Emmanuel Ogbah a few plays later.

The fourth-year player has been docked $16,883, as a result . Phillips' prognosis is a partially torn ACL that will require season-ending surgery. The injury came about after he collided with teammate Jordan Poyer and it's an extremely tough break after a torn Achilles ended his 2023 season early.

Through four games, Phillips amassed 1.0 sack, one tackle for loss, two quarterback hits, two passes defensed and six total tackles. His loss is yet another big blow to a Dolphins team that has consistently struggled throughout all four games of the year, so far. He has 23.0 sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, three fumble recoveries, 25 tackles for loss, 54 QB hits, seven passes defensed and 152 total tackles through 46 career games.

And speaking of Ogbah, he was also fined by the NFL. The penalty stems from his fourth quarter unnecessary roughness call that was a facemask on running back Tyjae Spears. The league docked him $11,255.