The Titans received no suspensions or individual fines and had no draft picks taken awayGETTY IMAGES
The Titans received a $350,000 fine from the NFL for breaking COVID-19 protocol, and the penalties are "probably a result of the league reckoning with the reality of the situation," according to Albert Breer of SI.com. The team received no suspensions, no draft picks "taken away" and not even a "single individual fine." While the issues league investigators did find "were problematic," they "didn’t see the organization as purposefully negligent." The NFL is learning this is a "struggle for everyone," and "dropping the hammer on the Titans wasn’t going to do much other than set a precedent that might become problematic as other issues arise and perhaps deepen some simmering club vs. league animosity over the handling of the protocols." The idea here "isn’t just to punish people to show the public how serious they are" (SI.com, 10/26). Football writer Paul Kuharsky tweeted: "The @NFL and @NFLPA should have issued a formal release about the conclusion of the #Titans investigation announcing the fine and spelling out what they found and what they didn’t find. Odd to me that there was no official conclusion, and they just left it to reports" (TWITTER.com, 10/25). NBCSPORTS.com's Peter King writes it is "important to spell out what exactly the team did wrong for two reasons -- so others can learn from it, and so the wild rumors that made so many people think the team should have gotten an all-time severe sanction could be dispelled" (NBCSPORTS.com, 10/26).
HEAVY PENALITES FOR RAIDERS: Fox' Jay Glazer reported the Raiders this week will be "fined very heavily, more than $350,000 and a possible draft pick pulled as well" for breaking COVID-19 protocols because they are "not a first time offender." Because the NFL is "past a bunch of the bye weeks now, there have to be drastic measures.” One measure could be “if a team cannot move, will they then fine that team where those players don’t get paid this week, and then actually pay the team that can’t play as a result” (“FOX NFL Sunday,” Fox, 10/25). In San Jose, Jon Becker notes the NFL, which has "sternly warned teams to follow protocols," sees the Raiders as "repeat offenders." This follows RT Trent Brown’s positive COVID-19 test last Monday and the "necessary quarantining" of five teammates who "the league said weren’t wearing masks while interacting with Brown." Brown also was in violation of a "rule that requires players to wear the tracking device that enables contact tracing for possible positive cases." The potential fine of over $350,000 "would bring the total amount the Raiders have been fined to more than" $1M this season. Raiders coach Jon Gruden has been fined $250,000 for "not wearing a mask on the sideline" and the team also was penalized $50,000 for "allowing an unauthorized person in their locker room after a game." In addition, several players were fined nearly $200,000 for "not wearing masks" at TE Darren Waller’s indoor charity event (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 10/26).
