Amongst Sunday’s NFL matchups was an AFC battle involving the Indianapolis Colts and Oakland Raiders. While Oakland came away with a victory by a touchdown, they also lost one of their players due to what was deemed a malicious play.
A major Vontaze Burfict suspension has been revealed a day after his late hit on Jack Doyle drew the attention of the league. It’s also causing some fans and viewers to wonder why another player maybe got off lightly for what some people believe is a similar hit.
Video shows Vontaze Burfict’s late hit on Jack Doyle
The play in question occurred during the second quarter of Sunday’s game. As Jack Doyle caught a pass from Colts quarterback Jacoby Brissett, two Raiders defenders rushed at him. Doyle was down on one knee on the field. As shown in the video below, Burfict lowered his head and ran into Doyle, hitting helmet-to-helmet with the Colts’ tight end.
Initially, the refs threw a flag on Burfict for unnecessary roughness. After a referee meeting to discuss it, the linebacker was tossed from the game for his late hit. He laughed it off as he ran off the field following that decision. It seems the league wasn’t in on that joke, as they hit Vontaze Burfict with a serious suspension a day later.
Burfict’s NFL suspensions, latest is for rest of the season
Due to Burfict’s helmet-to-helmet hit, he’s now suspended for the rest of the NFL season. The NFL made the announcement earlier on Monday (Sept. 30) which pleased a large number of non-Raiders fans out there.
Raiders LB Vontaze Burfict suspended for remainder of 2019 season. pic.twitter.com/ktMpyIvTrI
— NFL (@NFL) September 30, 2019
That may raise some eyebrows from Buffalo Bills fans. They watched as their quarterback Josh Allen was taken out of the game by a helmet-to-helmet hit. Allen is now in concussion protocol for the Bills as per policy. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport spoke about the two plays from Sunday’s games.
From @gmfb: #Bills QB Josh Allen is in the concussion protocol and #Patriots CB Jonathan Jones won’t be suspended… but #Raiders LB Vontaze Burfict is expected to be suspended for his hit. pic.twitter.com/pqkqa5lv2Y
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 30, 2019
Per ESPN, the league released a statement regarding previous warnings that Burfict was given for “other rule violations.” They also indicated there were no “mitigating circumstances” on the play to override the penalty and ejection. Now, he’s done for the rest of the NFL season.
Burfict’s recent suspension history
Since 2016, Burfict has been suspended for a total of 10 games. He received three-game suspensions in 2016 and 2017 for illegal hits. In 2018, it was a four-game suspension for PEDs. He just joined the Raiders’ defense this season and was named a team captain.
Vontaze Burfict has now been suspended four times for a total of 22 games, costing him $4,622,182 in salary and been fined nine other times totaling $411,064. Over $5M lost for unacceptable on-field actions.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 30, 2019
Burfict won’t just be suspended, but it’s also without pay. In addition, he will be ineligible to play during the postseason, should the Oakland Raiders qualify. However, there is also an appeal process which Burfict is sure to give his best attempt to, to see if he can have the suspension reduced.
Oakland won Sunday’s game 31-24 and currently has a 2-2 record, good for second in the AFC West behind the 4-0 Kansas City Chiefs. Next up, the Raiders will travel to London where they face former defensive star Khalil Mack and the Chicago Bears.