Matt Patterson/Associated Press
The NFL has fined the Recent England Patriots $350,000 for violating the league’s COVID-19 protocols in October, in accordance to Ian Rapoport of NFL Community.
The punishment comes from when Cam Newton tested constructive for the coronavirus, at final ensuing in more gamers being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 checklist. The league used to be compelled to extend its Week 4 sport in opposition to the Kansas City Chiefs—which used to be played without Newton—while the scheduled Week 5 matchup in opposition to the Denver Broncos used to be moved to Week 6.
Newton later outlined that his time within the strength created concerns for all individuals else once he tested constructive, by process of Trace Daniels of the Windfall Journal:
“I mediate the largest fear right here for all individuals used to be correct my, I bet, every day routine of what number of hours I build within the strength. And if I gotten smaller it, if any one would private had a purple flag, I mediate it can per chance private been me. Right here’s an particular person who’s right here as long as he’s. Who used to be he spherical? Who did he touch? And I was more infected by it, because I didn’t are looking out for to put no one else on the crew in jeopardy for this.”
He additionally said Stephon Gilmore later sorting out constructive used to be his “worst nightmare.”
The NFL started investigating whether the crew followed protocols rapidly after the first constructive take a look at, per Mike Florio of First rate Soccer Focus on.
The league has handed out punishments to several teams for no longer following protocols this season, with the Recent Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders getting harsher penalties for quite a bit of violations. The Tennessee Titans had been additionally fined $350,000 earlier this year after a valuable outbreak that precipitated sport postponements.
