Source: Teddy Bridgewater hit costs Rams CB Lamarcus Joyner $23,152

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Thursday, November 12, 2015

St. Louis Rams cornerback Lamarcus Joyner has been fined $23,152 by the NFL for his illegal hit on Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater on Sunday, a league source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Joyner hit Bridgewater in the head while the QB was sliding on a run. He drew a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty.

The hit knocked Bridgewater out of the game, a 21-18 Vikings overtime win in which Shaun Hill finished up for Minnesota.

Heated words from coaches on both teams ensued.

Mike Zimmer of the Vikings called it a "cheap shot" in his postgame news conference and pointed his finger at the Rams' defensive coordinator, saying, "[Gregg Williams'] defenses are all like that."

Rams counterpart Jeff Fisher, meanwhile, blasted criticism of the hit by NBC football analyst Rodney Harrison.

Joyner said Tuesday he expected a fine.

"I can't fix what happened," he said. "Like I said, it wasn't intentional, I know in my heart that it wasn't intentional and I sincerely apologize for it. I hope he's ready to go for his team on Sunday and continues to win football games for them, because that's a good organization over there."

Bridgewater, meanwhile, was in the league's concussion protocol this week. He was a full participant in practice Thursday, and the QB is expected to start Sunday at Oakland.

Information from ESPN.com's Ben Goessling and Nick Wagoner was used in this report.

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