Steelers judge fine for slap too lenient

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The Steelers wondered aloud this week if more should have been done to punish Raiders defensive end Richard Seymour for striking Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in the face Sunday.

Seymour, who hit Roethlisberger with an open hand in the second quarter of the Raiders' 35-3 loss, was ejected immediately and fined $25,000 by the league for his actions.

Steelers receiver Antwaan Randle El told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that Seymour's punishment would have been stiffer if he had hit Tom Brady or Peyton Manning.

"It would have been a little more," Randle El told the Post-Gazette. "Or if one of our guys did it, there would have been more."

Fellow wideout Hines Ward went further. The Post-Gazette reported Thursday that Ward said on his local radio show Tuesday that Seymour would have been suspended if he had struck either Brady or Manning.

Ward would not comment on his radio show comments when asked by the Post-Gazette but told the paper that the NFL isn't "being consistent with all the fines and the calls."

Roethlisberger, asked if the ruling would have been different if his name were different, was frank in his response.

"We all know the answer to that one. Easy," Roethlisberger told the Post-Gazette.

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