Hines Ward has a good beef with Ray Anderson. Why did the NFL's executive vice president for football operations have to call his hit on Bengals linebacker Keith Rivers legal but dirty?

Anderson never used the word "dirty" but he might as well have done so because the way he described it sure sounded like the definition of the word.

Answering a question as to whether Ward would be fined for his block, Anderson said he would not, then launched into an essay that reminded everyone that "under current rules" -- he used that term four times in his answer -- the hit was legal, but that it would be reviewed and may be made illegal in the offseason.

"We are going to look at that, but under the current rules as written now, it was a clean hit. It was a legal hit."

Gee, thanks for the explanation. No wonder Ward was so hot when he actually heard the explanation on tape Thursday morning.

Anderson said Rivers was in a "defenseless" position? This was a linebacker moving in to try to make a tackle on tight end Matt Spaeth. Ward came from the side and lowered the boom on him, in front, shoulder to shoulder. Perhaps Rivers should have some peripheral vision.

Defenseless? Since when are defenders defenseless? That's a term that normally applies to those who hold jobs such as Ward's, wide receivers, or quarterbacks. Linebackers are now defenseless? If Ward would have come in from behind and chopped him in the back of his knees, perhaps the term could be used.

At least Anderson admitted he would not mind seeing all fines made public. As it stands now, the NFL releases only those fines it wants to be made public and usually only if someone calls or sends an email to the league and asks about a specific player in a specific game.

As an example, I sent an email last Tuesday to the league, asking if it planned to do anything regarding Ward's hit on Rivers. I received an email back telling me to wait until Friday because that's when it could verify any fine. Later Tuesday night, however, the NFL Network broadcast the fact that Ward would not be fined.

A few weeks earlier, James Harrison's $20,000 fine for his comments on a referee was leaked to Fox Sports early in the week.

The league picks and chooses not only who it wants to fine but which fines to make public. Of course, any punishment dished out to its own officials remains private.

It's time the league shines a little light on all fines so not only the public but the players have a better idea of why others are being fined and how much so they can adjust their own behavior and play accordingly.

Isn't that why there are fines in the first place, to cut down on what the NFL deems unacceptable behavior, dress or play?

Anderson also explained several times why the league issues fines on plays that are not penalized on the field.

"A number of the helmet-to-helmets aren't flagged because they happen so fast,'' Anderson said. "The referees don't always have the ideal angle. When you have the benefit of seeing it at multiple angles, in slow motion on HD in the office, it is easier to determine that than bang-bang on the field with 22 guys flying around."

The officials in the league office certainly can find all kinds of things when they use slow motion on HD, but the game is not played that way. I've seen players fined for helmet-helmet hits that occurred not because there was intent, but because of happenstance, perhaps even the offensive player being hit was at fault because he turned the wrong way suddenly.

Throwback uniforms were a nice idea when teams wore them for one game once in awhile. The Steelers will wear theirs today for the second time this season and the fourth time in the past two seasons.

The yellow helmets are ugly and the old unis were discarded for a reason. Their throwback uniforms look similar to the ones West Virginia wears today. At least they do not look as bad as the helmets the Browns wore on Monday night when they played the Giants. The numbers on the helmets looked as if they were drawn with magic marker.

Enough already. Bring the throwbacks out once every other year or so, that way you can sell more jerseys and make more money without looking as if you're trying too hard to do it.

There are certain words you cannot use in public if you play in the NFL. James Harrison learned all about that when he questioned the integrity of referee Ron Winter, suggesting he might have had a bet on the game when he called a penalty on the linebacker for roughing the passer in Jacksonville.

Now Terrell Suggs, pictured above, will discover that even if there really, truly was no bounty put out on Rashard Mendenhall and Hines Ward by the Ravens, saying it will cost him in the pocket book.

There hasn't been this much discussion about a bounty since Bounty Bowl I and Bounty Bowl II between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles in 1989. Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson alleged that Eagles coach Buddy Ryan put out bounties on his kicker and quarterback Troy Aikman of $200 and $500 respectively to knock them out of the game.

Ryan denied it. Today, however, there is audio evidence of Suggs talking about the bounty put out on Mendenhall and Ward. He can explain it, try to spin it, but he cannot deny he said it, and, in the end, the NFL will punish him for it -- not as severely as what happened to Mendenhall. But at least Lewis' tackle on the rookie halfback was a clean one, that is, until they change the rules next season to disallow hard tackles along with hard blocks.