San Francisco safety Malik Mustapha got away without a flag for the second game in a row on Monday night, and this time the missed call could matter far more than a fine. If the league office reviews his hit on Washington receiver Stefon Diggs and fines it, Mustapha will be one violation away from an automatic one-game suspension under the new three-strike system the league and the players’ union adopted for 2026.
The play came on the Commanders’ opening drive at Levi’s Stadium. On third down, Diggs could not hold on to a pass from Jayden Daniels, and Mustapha arrived as the ball came loose, making contact high on the receiver. No flag was thrown, and Washington settled for a field goal that made it 7-3. Mike Florio described the collision as an illegal helmet-to-helmet hit on a defenseless receiver and predicted it would draw another fine.
🚨#Commanders Stefon Diggs with a drop then takes a hard hit https://t.co/YnQS7m6EkW
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) October 20, 2026
Diggs hurt his right hand on the play, appearing to jam his ring finger against Mustapha’s helmet. He went to the sideline for treatment and returned to the game.
Strike one came against Seattle
Mustapha already has one violation in the same category. In Week 5, he hit Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba helmet to helmet on Seattle’s final drive. Officials missed that one too, even though a flag would have given the Seahawks a first down at the San Francisco 35, trailing by three with 1:09 left. The league caught it on film and fined him $6,998, one of the unflagged hits on the Week 5 discipline list released on Saturday, October 17.
A second fine for the Diggs hit would leave him on two strikes with most of the season still to play.
How the new suspension rule works
Before the season, the league and the union agreed to focus on-field discipline on five techniques they consider most likely to injure players. Instead of judging each foul on its own, the system now counts repeat violations of the same rule:
- Hip-drop tackle
- Horse-collar tackle
- Launching
- Hit on a defenseless player
- Blindside block
A player who commits three violations of any one of those rules in a season is suspended for one game, and every further violation that year adds another game. Fouls found on film count even when the officials did not throw a flag, which is why Mustapha’s two missed calls still go on his record.
The count does not always reset in January. Every player started 2026 with a clean slate, but a player with two violations in a season carries one into the next year, and a player who reaches a suspension carries two, which keeps him one mistake from another ban for all of the following season. The formula also reaches into the playoffs, so a third strike in Week 18 would cost a player the first postseason game.
Coaches now have to sit in on the league’s meetings with players who are close to the threshold, and clubs with too many of these violations face bigger team fines. Former Panthers and Washington coach Ron Rivera was added to the panel of former players who hear on-field discipline appeals.
Why defensive backs are watching
Hits on defenseless receivers are the hardest of the five to avoid, because a receiver who lowers his head into an otherwise legal shoulder hit can turn it into a foul in an instant. Florio has argued that this makes a defender sitting on two strikes a target: an offense could look to put him in position for a third.
That is now Mustapha’s situation if the league rules against him again. Fines from Week 7 games are usually announced on Saturday, and any fine can be appealed. If the Diggs hit is fined and upheld, San Francisco’s hard-hitting safety will have to play the rest of the season knowing his next defenseless-player foul, flagged or not, costs him a game.
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