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Jets fine Scott $10K for obscene gesture

NEW YORK (AP) - The Jets fined linebacker Bart Scott $10,000 on Thursday for an obscene gesture he made toward a photographer in the team's locker room Monday.

After gathering items from his locker at the team's facility in Florham Park, N.J., Scott walked past reporters and then turned, stuck out his middle finger and used an expletive while telling a photographer to get the camera out of his face.

The team said in a statement announcing the fine Thursday that Scott's "actions were inappropriate and unacceptable." NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Scott would not face additional discipline from the league, saying the Jets' fine "will suffice" and was handled as "a club matter."

It is uncertain whether Scott, who's owed $4 million in guarantees next season and is signed through 2014, will be back with the Jets next season. One of coach Rex Ryan's favorites, Scott has seen his productivity dip in the last two seasons.

Ryan was fined $50,000 by the team in 2010 after making the same gesture at a fan at a mixed martial arts events in Miami. The NFL also fined him $75,000 in November for using profanity while angrily responding to a fan at halftime of a home game against the New England Patriots.

The fine is the latest in a tumultuous week for the Jets (8-8), who failed to make the playoffs after a disappointing season in which they lost their final three games.

Wide receiver Santonio Holmes was benched in the season finale Sunday after arguing in the huddle, an ugly incident that had some such as LaDainian Tomlinson questioning Holmes' role as a team captain. It also has many wondering about Holmes' future with the team, although Ryan and general manager have said he will be a member of the Jets next season.

Ryan, who cried in the team's final meeting Monday, said he didn't "think I had the pulse of our team the way I've done in the past." Rookie quarterback Greg McElroy told an Alabama radio station on Wednesday that there was a "corrupt mindset" in the locker room and the team included some "extremely selfish individuals."