NFL fines Bears' T.J. Edwards for banned hip-drop tackle

Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards wasn’t flagged for a hip-drop tackle Sunday but was fined for it six days later.

The NFL fined him $16,833 Saturday for a hit on Joe Mixon in the third quarter that sent the Texans running back to the sideline with an ankle injury. Mixon played seven snaps the rest of the way and will miss this week’s game against the Vikings.

This offseason, the NFL banned the hip-drop tackle, a rugby-style play in which a defender swivels his hips, unweights himself and drops onto the legs of the ball-carrier.

"The NFL and NFLPA made it a rule and an emphasis for a reason," Mixon wrote on X after the game. "Time to put your money where your mouth is."

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said this week that, despite the fact Edwards wasn’t flagged, he “definitely” used the banned technique.

The NFL fined defensive tackle Zacch Pickens $7,000 for hitting quarterback C.J. Stroud in the head and neck in the second quarter and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson $8,143 for taunting in the first. Texans receiver Nico Collins was fined $11,817 for hitting Stevenson after his taunt.