New York, NY (Sports Network) - The NFL announced on Monday that Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh will not receive a suspension for his kick to Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub on Thanksgiving Day, though the league did not rule out fining the controversial lineman for his actions.
Suh, who has a well-documented history of on-field rules violations and was handed a 2-game ban last season for stomping on the arm of Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith during a 2011 Thanksgiving matchup, kicked Schaub in the groin while falling to the ground during a pass rush in the first quarter of Thursday's 34-31 overtime loss to the Texans.
Replays were inconclusive in determining whether or not the move was intentional, however, which likely factored into the NFL's decision.
"Our office has notified the Lions that Suh will not be suspended for Thursday's incident." NFL public relations spokesman Greg Aiello tweeted on Monday. "It will be reviewed for a potential fine."
Suh, voted the league's dirtiest player in a recent poll taken by the Sporting News, has been fined numerous times by the league for flagrant and overaggressive play during his three-year career. His most notorious moment came during Thanksgiving of last season, when he pushed Dietrich-Smith's head to the turf and deliberately stepped on his arm in a nationally televised clash with the Packers.
The 2010 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year was immediately ejected from that game and forced to sit out two others without pay.
Suh also incurred a $20,000 fine for an illegal hit on Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton during the 2011 preseason and was fined twice for unsportsmanlike conduct during his rookie campaign of 2010.
