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Raiders linemen and partners in crime Robert Gallery (left, No. 76) and Barry Sims are tied for second overall in the NFL with 11 penalties each thus far this season. Only Green Bay corner Charles Woodson -- a former Raider -- has more fouls this season.
An exasperated Tom Coughlin threatened to bench offensive linemen after his New York Giants committed 11 false-start penalties during a memorable loss at the Seattle Seahawks two seasons ago.
The coach should advocate pay raises for his linemen now.
The Giants' front five has committed only five false-start penalties all season, helping New York get a jump on most of the NFC. Speaking of getting jumps -- no teams get more of them than the Oakland Raiders and St. Louis Rams.
The Raiders' line, led by habitual penalty offenders Robert Gallery and Barry Sims, leads the league with 20 false-start penalties this season.
10 most penalized players, 2004-07
Player Number
Robert Gallery 46
Alex Barron 43
Leonard Davis 39
Chris McAlister 39
Tarik Glenn 37
Al Harris 36
Flozell Adams 35
Quentin Jammer 33
Chester Pitts 33
Jason Taylor 33
St. Louis is second with 16, but Oakland remains within the reach as long as tackle Alex Barron is lining up for the Rams.
Barron has drawn 43 penalties since 2004, second among all NFL players. Gallery leads the way with 46, but Sims is keeping pace this season. They each have 11, tied for second in the league behind Green Bay Packers cornerback Charles Woodson, who has 12.
That's the word from ESPN researchers Noel Nash, Matthew Weeks, Ben Lerner and Paul McGhee. They crunched league-wide penalty totals since 2004, providing enough data to identify trends without reaching beyond average career lengths. They broke down penalties by type and even situation, singling out offenders most likely to hurt their teams in the fourth quarters of close games.
We break down the highlights -- or lowlights, as they might be -- halfway through the NFL season.
1. Habitual offenders
Offensive linemen tend to play nearly all the snaps. Most need to get off the ball ASAP to handle superior athletes on opposing defenses. They would rather risk holding than allow their quarterbacks to take direct shots.
But some of these guys can't function within the rules. Eleven of the 15 most-penalized players since 2004 are offensive linemen.
Oakland's Gallery was the second player chosen in the 2004 draft, but he ranks first on the list of the most-penalized players over the past 3
