ON FOOTBALL: NFL better served with suspensions than fines?

Hitting millionaires with fines that barely make a dent in their wallets doesn't measure up to the dents those players are making in opponents.

Just how much are tacklers becoming more cautious when it comes to potentially questionable hits?

With its player safety initiatives and ramped-up penalties for illegal hits, the league and the players' union have made headway.

[...] when Broncos safety Darian Stewart has been in two games this month and gotten fined more than $27,000 for hits on quarterbacks, it takes the conversation in the direction of ejections and suspensions.

Others include contact with officials or ripping off an opponent's helmet.

[...] when Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. speared Panthers cornerback Josh Norman last December — Beckham's third major penalty of the game — there was no ejection.

Nothing's working,' says Bengals tackle Eric Winston, president of the NFLPA.

[...] you go four more weeks and nothing happens and no one says anything.

[...] we're all trying to win, to make a living, he adds, but at the same time, we can't take those shots that are going to try to end someone's career and someone's season.

The smart route for the NFL appears obvious: heavier discipline for egregious incidents.

Winston also notes the size of NFL rosters works against going the college route, where ejections are more common.