Texans' Jaelen Strong fined for unnecessary roughness infraction

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Texans wide receiver Jaelen Strong was fined $9,115 by the NFL for his unnecessary roughness penalty against the New England Patriots.

He plans to appeal the punishment from the league office.

Strong lost his temper and smacked Patriots rookie cornerback Cyrus Jones in the facemask after a play last Thursday and was flagged for a personal foul.

Strong dropped an accurate pass that went through his hands during the 27-0 loss. He finished with just one reception for 15 yards on four targets as he got the start with Braxton Miller sidelined

"Jaelen has to do some things better to continue to have the ball thrown to him," Texans coach Bill O'Brien said. "He can't commit personal foul penalties. That really, at that stage of the game, was kind of not the time when we needed something like that, that's for sure. He works very hard. I don't think it's a matter of what's happened to him. It's just 'Hey, keep grinding, keep working and keep perfecting your route running and eventually the ball's going to come to you.'"

Strong emerged as a more important part of the offense late in the season for the Texans as a rookie last year, catching 14 passes for 161 yards and three touchdowns.

Despite the slow start, Strong is remaining patient.

"Opportunity is going to come," Strong said. "Whenever they do, I just have to make the most of it."