Aaron Rodgers Fined for Facemask Penalty vs. Falcons: Latest Details, Reaction

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers received a $9,115 fine from the NFL for his 15-yard facemask penalty against the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 22.

Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com passed along word of the punishment Saturday, which stems from a play where Rodgers ripped off cornerback Robert Alford's helmet.

Green Bay was trailing 44-15 midway through the fourth quarter at the time, and a visibly frustrated Rodgers also "bumped" Alford on his way back to the huddle, which Alford embellished.

The Falcons held on for an emphatic 44-21 victory to punch their ticket to Super Bowl 51, where they'll face the New England Patriots in Houston on Feb. 5.

Rodgers didn't even think a penalty should have been called on the play in question.

"I just told the ref, 'You know, he picked up the flag when they looked at the JumboTron when I scrambled and did kind of a weird in-between forward and front slide and the guy hit me in the head, and they picked up that penalty [flag],'" Rodgers said. "So I just said, 'Why don't you look up at the JumboTron and pick up this penalty?' Because it obviously wasn't an excessive blow to the head there deserving of a 15-yard penalty, in my opinion."

He added: "I went for the stiff-arm, and I'm not a stiff-arm connoisseur. My thumb slipped through his facemask, his helmet was on loosely, and his helmet came off."

According to Tom Pelissero of USA Today, Falcons players said rattling Rodgers was a priority.

"I really don't know. I'll leave it up to y'all to decide," Alford said. "I've never seen Aaron Rodgers do the things, some of the things, that he's done. But I think we probably rattled him a little bit."

The cornerback also discussed the facemask play.

"You seen him snatch my helmet off," Alford said. "That's not Aaron Rodgers-like-type plays. I mean, he's a great quarterback. For him to do that, I'm speechless with that one."

The silver lining? Rodgers made $19.25 million in base salary and bonuses this season. He won't have trouble covering a $9,115 fine.