Patriots, Texans Defenders Both Fined Before Divisional Round Matchup

The New England Patriots and Houston Texans had some administrative situations to deal with before their divisional round matchup on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.

Patriots linebacker Christian Elliss was fined $17,389 for a facemask penalty in the second quarter of last Sunday’s wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers, as shared by ESPN’s Mike Reiss.

Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair was also fined $11,593 for a violation of uniform and equipment rules for wearing eye black that contained a personal message during Monday’s wild-card win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, as shared by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

It’s funny how things like that work out… well, not for Elliss and Al-Shaair.

Elliss, who was penalized on the play, has now been fined twice in the last several weeks for the same infraction — having been hit for $11,593 after grabbing the facemask of Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers.

Al-Shaair, who was ultimately punished for wearing the words “STOP THE GENOCIDE” on his eye black, as a significant history of fines and suspensions — forfeiting money three times this season for illegal hits against the Chargers, Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans.

The Patriots and Texans will fight for the right to advance to the AFC Championship on Sunday, with kickoff scheduled for 3 p.m. ET.