Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown and cornerback Mike Edwards have been suspended by the NFL for violating league COVID protocols. A Tampa Bay Times investigation alleged Brown purchased fake vaccination cards prior to the start of training camp.
Free agent cornerback John Franklin III was also suspended for violating protocols. Brown and Edwards are suspended for the next three games without pay. Franklin is not allowed to play in his next three games if he is signed by a team.
The suspensions are “effective immediately,” according to NFL.com.
“The health and safety of players and personnel is our top priority,” according to a joint NFL-NFLPA statement. “The protocols were jointly developed working with our respective experts to ensure that we are practicing and playing football as safely as possible during the ongoing pandemic. The NFL-NFLPA jointly reinforce their commitment and further emphasize the importance of strict adherence to the protocols to protect the well-being of everyone associated with the NFL.”
The Bucs released their own statement after the suspensions were dealt.
Brown has been on the Injured Reserved list since week 6 with an apparent ankle injury. He is expected to be on the list for another two weeks and will technically only be forced to miss the game after he comes off the IR. He will not, however, receive pay for any of these games.
Brown and company are not the first players to be misleading with their vaccination status. Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has come under scrutiny for admitting to not being vaccinated after claiming to be “immunized” at the start of the season. Rodgers was forced to miss his team’s week 9 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs after testing positive for COVID-19.
Brown has had 29 catches for 418 receiving yards and four touchdowns in five games this season.
