declared early on Friday morning that defensive end Myles Garrett of the Browns had been suspended indefinitely, if only for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs. Three games of suspension were imposed on Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey and one game on Browns defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi. The league stated that other players’ sanctions would be decided later. Each of the two franchises received a $250,000 fine.
Myles Garrett, a defensive end for the Cleveland Browns, did the closest thing to an on-field crime that we have witnessed in the modern history of professional football on Thursday night. There only needs to be one answer. With six games left in Garrett’s 2019 season and the world knowing that what transpired at FirstEnergy Stadium ranks among the worst on-field incidents in the league’s history, the NFL is forced to impose the lengthiest suspension for a single on-field incident in its history.
The penalty may seem harsh, but people who saw Garrett rip Mason Rudolph’s helmet off of the Pittsburgh Steelers and beat his uncovered head won’t find it all that offensive. If Garrett hit someone while wearing a helmet on Cleveland’s streets, he would be taken into custody. Football players with experience gasped at the outburst’s extreme violence; few, if any, intentional acts in a century of league play have been as violent as this one.
The NFL should have no issue figuring out Garrett’s absence. It suspended Oakland Raiders linebacker Vontaze Burfict indefinitely for a sequence of on-field actions that resulted in a helmet-to-helmet hit earlier this season. But five games is the longest suspension it has ever handed down for a single on-field incident. The incident happened in 2006 when Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth kicked and stomped on Dallas Cowboys center Andre Gurode’s face after ripping off Gurode’s helmet. Gurode needed thirty stitches to close his wounds.
Agent for Rudolph considers his legal options from melee 4yBrooke Pryor Rudolph was fortunate to have escaped a similar or worse fate. When Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield spoke moments later in a Fox interview, his stunned expression captured the gravity of the situation. Mayfield was unable to muster any resistance for his colleague.
“It’s unacceptable,” he declared. “That simply puts the opposing team in jeopardy. In all likelihood, he will receive a suspension. Our team suffers because we are unsure of how long.”
Remember that Rudolph missed one game after being struck in the helmet last month, rendering him unconscious. Earl Thomas III of the Baltimore Ravens delivered the blow with such force that Rudolph’s eyes were closed before he even made contact with the ground. Should you have been aware of that background, you undoubtedly winced when you witnessed Garrett strike Rudolph in the head, culminating in Browns defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi shoving Rudolph unconscious from behind.
Following his entry into the altercation, Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey kicked and punched Garrett, intensifying the situation to the point where it wouldn’t have been shocking to see police officers on the field. (While they were on the ground, Rudolph did tug at Garrett’s helmet, but that act of hostilityscarcely deserved the reply.)
