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Devon Witherspoon's week gets even worse after NFL hits him where it hurts

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Evan Winter | Last updated Oct 4, 2025 7:14 PM ET

The NFL is on a mission to limit taunting as much as possible in 2025 and two Seattle Seahawks players are the latest victims of the crusade.

Both running back Kenneth Walker III and cornerback Devon Witherspoon were fined $11,593 for taunting on separate occasions during the Seahawks' Week 4 win over the Arizona Cardinals.

For Witherspoon, it's insult to injury and makes his week even worse, as Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald went ahead and ruled him out of this week's matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Friday. The third-year corner didn't practice all week long due to a knee injury he picked up against the Cardinals.

As with just about every new point of emphasis, the taunting calls have been pretty controversial, so far. Walker III was flagged in the second quarter and it pushed the Seahawks out of field goal range - and honestly, his transgression was minor, to say the least:

The NFL fined #Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III $11,593 for taunting — pointing and tossing the ball at #Cardinals CB Kei’Trel Clark, who’d yanked Walker’s leg after a play last week.

Clark was not flagged or fined.

pic.twitter.com/5zKf2UU0eL
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 4, 2025

Witherspoon was not flagged for taunting during the game, again, raising questions about the consistency of these calls.

Commentators Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit, who called the Seahawks' win over the Cardinals on Thursday Night Football, both vehemently disagreed with the Walker III call during the broadcast. It's quickly become an issue due to the subjectiveness involved with the flags. For instance, Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cooper DeJean was flagged after he harmlessly stepped over a Buccaneers player after making a tackle. DeJean was simply avoiding stepping on the guy - he wasn't trying to talk smack or taunt him. He was also fined $11,593.

The NFL fined #Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III $11,593 for taunting — pointing and tossing the ball at #Cardinals CB Kei’Trel Clark, who’d yanked Walker’s leg after a play last week.

Clark was not flagged or fined.

pic.twitter.com/5zKf2UU0eL
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 4, 2025

Cooper DeJean was fined $11,593 for taunting after tackling and stepping over Rachaad White in the first quarter last Sunday. pic.twitter.com/mkjKVMj0I5
— Victor Williams (@ThePhillyPod) October 4, 2025

What's really going to become frustrating is when a player gets flagged for this during a big moment in a crucial game. Football is a game of emotion and energy - it's one thing to flag egregious taunts and whatnot, but going after stuff like this is a slippery slope that can really rear its ugly head later in the season.

And I do not want to be a fan of the team that watches their squad lose a big game because of a taunting penalty. The NFL has to be careful with this.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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