Cleveland Browns: ‘Indefinite’ may mean 12 games for Myles Garrett
NFL rules expert Mike Pereira has had some time to digest Myles Garrett’s actions and talked about why a 12-game suspension may be in his future.
The Cleveland Browns know they’ll be without Myles Garrett for the foreseeable future, as the NFL indefinitely suspended the defensive end just 12 hours after an incident in which the Texas A&M product ripped off Mason Rudolph‘s head and tried to hit him with it.
Fox replay analyst Mike Pereira initially thought Garrett might get a four-game suspension, but after taking some more time to examine the hit, memories of Albert Haynesworth stomping on someone’s head were brewed up fresh in his mind.
Pereira was part of the group in New York City in the NFL offices that decided to suspended Haynesworth for five games.
Appearing on ESPN Cleveland radio, Peira said that three things will ultimately determine the case against Garrett.
1. Precedent: According to Pereira, this shot from Vontaze Burfict on Jack Doyle gives the NFL something work off when it comes to the number of games Garrett will actually be out.
2. History: Garrett has been fined $52,000 this year for illegal hits on opposing quarterbacks.
3. Severity: Peira noted how this was an unquestioned, non-football act.
Burfict ended up getting bounced for 12 games, and that could be more if the Raiders end up making the playoffs. But with Burfict in mind, it’s why the former long-time official can see the NFL ultimately handing Garrett 12 games, via TheLandonDemand.com (subscription).
"“I think Roger Goodell is going to sit down and have a conversation with Myles and if he’s not satisfied, if Myles says once again, ‘I’m not going to change the way I play,’ then I think this could rival what turn out to be something near a 12-game suspension in the end,” Peirera said."
It wasn’t all that surprising to see the league act so swiftly in this situation because The Shield doesn’t want it to be a topic of discussion during this weekend’s games. Suspending Garrett indefinitely means the former No. 1 pick won’t be on the field for a while, and that takes the story out of the news, at least a little.
That may be true nationally, but Garrett’s actions will reverberate throughout town for longer than the 2019 season.
Look for a number to be attached to Garrett’s suspension soon, though, based off this Tweet from Mike Florio. The Pro Football Talk blog leader said that collective bargaining agreement does not “permit an indefinite suspension for on-field misconduct.’
Garrett is gone, definitely for this season and problem some of next. It’s heartbreaking for fans who can’t even celebrate a still rare win for their downtrodden franchise.
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Hopefully, the Browns find it within themselves to pull themselves up by their clown decorated cleans and get it together, though. There’s six games left to go, and a winning season is still on the table. That means something for this team and these young players and we’ll all get to see how they react confronted by an astounding amount of adversity.