Chiefs LB Nick Bolton fined for horsecollar tackle of 49ers QB Brock Purdy

Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton was fined for his horse collar tackle of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.

In the week after the Super Bowl win for the Chiefs, no player was fined for anything during the game. That changed Monday, according to Pro Football Talk.

Bolton was flagged for a horse collar tackle of Purdy when he reached into the collar as the QB went out of bounds. However, Purdy actually never hit the ground.

“Bolton was flagged for a horse-collar tackle on 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy during the second quarter of the game,” Michael David Smith wrote. “And now the NFL has confirmed that Bolton was also fined $8,238 for the penalty. It was a fairly minor horse-collar tackle by Bolton, who only briefly grabbed the back of Purdy’s jersey and let go without dragging Purdy to the ground. But the officials felt it was worthy of a flag, and the league’s disciplinary office felt it was worthy of a fine.

“Kansas City’s L’Jarius Sneed was flagged for unnecessary roughness, the only other personal foul called in the game, but the NFL did not fine Sneed, or any other player. Bolton’s fine was the only one for any infraction committed during the Super Bowl.”

Bolton finished the game with 13 tackles, five solo and one tackle for loss. He’s now a two-time Super Bowl champion after scoring a defensive touchdown in last year’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Bolton was one of the players on the Chiefs who talked openly about Kansas City embracing the underdog role. The 49ers were the Vegas favorite going into the game before losing in overtime.

“I think a lot of guys in this locker room have spent their whole lives as underdogs,” Bolton said. “Guys that weren’t highly recruited. Guys that didn’t come out of the draft as high picks. “Being underdogs, I think we embody that personality, man.”

The Chiefs drafted Bolton out of Missouri with the No. 58 overall pick (second round) in the 2021 NFL Draft. He made the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

While with the Tigers, he was a two-time First-Team All-SEC player and was a Second-Team All-American in 2020.

As a member of the Class of 2018, Bolton was a three-star recruit out of Frisco (Texas) Lone Star, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 151 overall prospect in the state, the No. 118 linebacker in the class and the No. 1,032 overall prospect in the class.