Finnegan believes he is target of refs

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Tennessee Titans cornerback Cortland-Finnegan recently told TitanInsider that he coveted the honor of being the NFL's Dirtiest Player, a list he finished sixth on in 2009.

But now after getting his second 15-yard personal foul penalty in as many games, Finnegan is beginning to wonder if he is becoming a target of the officials.

In a game that featured a brief skirmish between the Titans' Jovan Haye and the Giants' Brandon Jacobs, and a total of nine personal fouls, Finnegan was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a tackle against receiver Steve Smith in the second quarter.

It was enough to make the cornerback cry foul over the personal foul.

“That's what upsets me a little bit. They let certain guys get away with it, and then guys they're looking for, they immediately try to nip it in the bud. It's not fair basically,” Finnegan said.

He said he expects to be fined this week and will appeal if one is levied. Finnegan already has one $5,000 fine that he plans to appeal. It came in last week's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“I was just trying to make a tackle. He stiff-armed me to the point where I was falling back, and I just grabbed. Hopefully, that appeal process works,” Finnegan said. “It was just one of those things where I was trying to do things right, and I get flagged. Oh, well.”

Asked if he felt he was being targeted by officials for his play, Finnegan said, “I think so. We'll see. The guy stiff-armed me and I was trying to make a tackle. I wasn't trying to hurt him or anything. I was just trying to make a tackle, because I'm in man-to-man coverage.”