The NFL has suspended Cardinals and former Jaguars wide receiver Zay Jones for the first five games of the 2024 season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported Friday.
The Florida State Attorney’s office in March declined to prosecute Jones on a misdemeanor domestic battery with bodily harm charge, for which he was arrested last November while playing with the Jaguars.
The NFL suspended Jones following its own investigation into the matter, a standard operating procedure, according to Pelissero.
Per Michael DiRocco of ESPN, the arrest report detailed an alleged physical altercation between Jones and the mother of his child in which she was left with “small scratches on the … neck, consistent with marks from a fingernail” on her neck, amid an argument.
Jones did not face internal discipline from the Jaguars but missed eight games during the season while battling multiple injuries, first hurting his knee in Week 2 then his hamstring in Week 15.
He caught 34 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns on the campaign, before his April release, a move that freed Jacksonville nearly $4.2 million in 2024 salary cap space.
Jones proceeded to sign with Arizona following a free agency tour in May.
Jones posted 116 receptions for 1,144 yards and seven touchdowns over 25 appearances and two seasons with Jacksonville, raising his seven-year statistical totals to 287 receptions for 3,028 yards and 18 touchdowns.