Earl Bennett wore his orange cleats again on "Monday Night Football." In one of the most predictable stories of the year, the NFL again fined him for it.
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The Chicago Bears wide receiver told ESPNChicago.com on Thursday that he was fined $10,500 for wearing the cleats. He was docked twice for doing the same thing last year because the league ruled it was a violation of its uniform policy.
Bennett said wearing the cleats this year wasn't planned ahead of time.
"It actually came about when I walked in the locker room (before the game), and because I had them in my bag, and I wasn't sure if I was going to wear them," Bennett said. "Then Brandon Marshall was like, 'Let's wear them.' So I just put them on. I probably wouldn't have worn them if he wouldn't have agreed to it."
There's a strong chance Marshall also was fined, although that hasn't been confirmed.
Last year, Bennett wore the cleats in two consecutive games. The NFL threatened to eject him and give the Bears a penalty if he did it a third time in a row. So, uh, we guess Bennett has one game to work with if he's feeling orange again this week against the Carolina Panthers.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.