So much for apologies - Tom Brady might've said he was sorry to Ed Reed after his foot-first slide into the Ravens safety in Sunday's AFC Championship Game, but, incidental or not, the NFL will fine the Patriots quarterback $10,000 for the kick, NFL.com first reported.
"#Patriots QB Tom Brady was fined $10,000 for unnecessary roughness in the AFC championship game, I'm told. Came on the Ed Reed slide," tweeted Ian Rapoport for NFL.com.
An official in the league with knowledge of Brady's penalty has also confirmed the news to the Associated Press. The source shared the information on the condition of anonymity, as the fine had not been announced yet, the Associated Press reported.
"Any play of that nature is routinely reviewed," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Tuesday.
The play in question came Sunday during the final minute of the first half when the New England Patriots quarterback dashed on an improvised run, sliding safely, foot-first to a stop while raising his leg to kick the fast approaching Reed, who temporarily limped away.
In the league's official rulebook, Rule 12, Section 2, Article 6(a), which covers unnecessary roughness penalties, explains the penalty as, "Using the foot or any part of the leg to strike an opponent with a whipping motion."
As Bleacher Report's Twitter handle notes, the $10,000 fine levied on Brady is actually less of a league penalty than what the NFL charged San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore for not wearing his socks high enough in the NFC Championship Game.
"NFL fines Tom Brady $10,000 for sliding cleats-up into Ed Reed while Frank Gore was fined $10,500 because his socks were too short. Sure," tweeted BleacherReport.
Yahoo! Sports writer Brian McIntyre echoed that sentiment on Twitter, as well, seemingly noting the absurdity of the entire situation.
"Don't disagree with Frank Gore fine (it's the NFL, not the Stanford band), but Gore's sock fine $500 more than Brady's kick to Reed's groin," tweeted McIntyre.
As CBS Sports noted, Reed most likely feels a little justice at the punishment, considering the nine-time Ravens Pro Bowler has been fined four times in the last three years, with all of each of those fines much higher than Brady's.
According to Reed, Brady has reached out to him following the kick and apologized for making contact with him on the slide.
"I told him -- you know, we talked," Reed told WJZ-FM in Baltimore. "We talked actually not too long ago; we talked on the phone. He actually reached out to me, texted me. I tried to text him back, but the message exploded after 12 seconds, so I had to call him ... and he just apologized and what not. But I told him, 'You know, it's good, man.' "
Reed suggested the kick came after Brady engaged in some trash talking with the Ravens safety on the field.
"For the most part, I didn't say anything to him when he said something to me at the game," he said. "... He was going, 'You want to play like that, let's go.' But, no, Brady's a great competitor and I love going against him and I know where his heart is at for this game. It was all good."
Reed added that he still admires Brady and his talent.
"You know, I understand Brady's point," Reed told WJF-FX earlier this week. "Him protecting himself. I know he's a great player," he said. "I respect Brady and his game for all it stands for, and I know he's not a dirty player. And emotions get going in the game."
Ravens safety Bernard Pollard wasn't as ready to forgive and forget Brady's kick. Pollard insisted Monday that the NFL, which charges fines on defensive players for helmet-to-helmet hits, should discipline Brady.
"If you want to keep this going in the right direction, everyone should be penalized for their actions," Pollard said, adding Brady "knew what he was doing."
"It has to go both ways. Hopefully the NFL will do something about it. If they don't, that's fine. If they do, then that's fine."
The Baltimore Ravens knocked the New England Patriots out of the playoffs in a 28-13 victory Sunday, becoming AFC champions and earning a trip to the Super Bowl.
Brady isn't likely to wince at a $10,000 fine from the NFL; for a QB who's scheduled to make about $14 million next season, the penalty is snack food money.