Rams DE Sims appealing fine for hit on Saints RB Sproles

St. Louis Rams defensive end Eugene Sims tells The Associated Press he's been fined $7,875 for a hit on the Saints' Darren Sproles, and that he is appealing.

NFL spokesman Randall Liu says he hadn't received any fine information and that the league typically receives and confirms fines on Friday.

Sims was penalized for unnecessary roughness in the first quarter and says Wednesday he believed he'd done nothing wrong. It appeared Sproles was not down on a reception for a loss of 5 yards and New Orleans got a first down at the Rams 30 in St. Louis' 27-16 win on Sunday.

Sims and Rams teammates believed Sproles could have rolled off a Rams player and kept going. Coach Jeff Fisher criticized the call from the sideline.