Tom Brady fined $10,000 for kick on Ed Reed … or, less than Frank Gore got fined for low socks

For those who think quarterbacks get preferential treatment by the NFL, this news will cause a bit of a stir.

NFL.com has reported that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has been fined $10,000 for going all Daniel-san/Ty Cobb on Ravens safety Ed Reed and kicking his cleats into Reed's leg at the end of a run.

This news came a few hours after it was reported San Francisco running back Frank Gore was fined $10,500 for wearing his socks too low in the NFC championship game.

So let's review. Brady went in with a dangerous slide to Reed (and, even if you want to argue the "dangerous" part of that statement, let's all agree it was more dangerous than a player not having his socks up by his knees), and he's fined less than Gore for a sock violation.

The league is under a ton of heat for possibly looking the other way on player safety for years, and this doesn't really help matters. Ravens safety Bernard Pollard brought up the double standard in the NFL for quarterbacks and though Brady should be punished, it will be interesting if he and other defensive players think this is a fair punishment.

Brady apologized to Reed after the game, Reed said, and the NFL obviously found it to be a bad enough foul to fine Brady. What if the roles were reversed and Reed had gone in feet up and kicked a quarterback?

For those who think quarterbacks are treated differently by the NFL, the answer will be pretty easy.