[ad_1]
Amid a COVID-19 crisis, the NFL has sanctioned two teams for failing to follow league protocols.
The New England Patriots were fined $ 350,000, and the New Orleans Saints were fined $ 500,000 and denied a future seventh-round pick for various protocol violations, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Sources: The #Patriots were fined $ 350,000 for COVID-19 protocol violations resulting from problems in October when Cam Newton and others tested positive.
the #Saints were fined $ 500,000 and a 7th round pick for their celebration in the maskless locker room. They are repeat offenders.
– Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 29, 2020
The punishments mirror those the NFL handed out to the Tennessee Titans and Las Vegas Raiders earlier this month for relatively similar violations.
Saints punished for a celebration without a mask
The root of the Saints’ harsh punishment is believed to be due to celebrating their maskless locker room after their Week 9 demolition of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After beating the Bucs 38-3 in prime time, the players and head coach Sean Payton were dancing maskless in the locker room, which they are not allowed to do.
How do we know they did this? Players posted videos to their social media accounts, as did the official Saints Twitter account.
The NFL probably didn’t have to spend too much time researching evidence as players literally posted videos of themselves breaking the rules.
The only other team to receive such a harsh punishment are the Raiders, which makes sense. Both teams are repeat offenders. Both teams, along with Payton and Raiders head coach Jon Gruden, were fined for failing to properly wear their masks when they faced each other in Week 2. The Raiders were fined. punished again in November for continued mask violations, fined $ 500,000 and loss of a sixth round pick.
Patriots fined for October epidemic
The Patriots’ $ 350,000 fine is believed to be linked to the COVID-19 outbreak in mid-October that necessitated the postponement of their Week 5 game against the Denver Broncos on two occasions, although specific violations did not are not known.
Quarterback Cam Newton was placed on the reserve / COVID-19 roster on October 3, the first of seven players to be on the roster over a two-week period. Stephon Gilmore, Byron Cowart, James Ferentz, Derek Rivers, Shaq Mason and Sony Michel would all end up on the reserve / COVID-19 list before the outbreak is brought under control. The Patriots haven’t placed any players on the roster since then.
It’s the same fine the Titans received for their early-season epidemic, which affected more than 20 members of their organization and forced the NFL to seriously overhaul the schedule.
Learn more about Yahoo Sports:
[ad_2]
Source link