Tag: suspended

Alvin Kamara plans to tell his side of the story to Roger Goodell before suspension

Alvin Kamara plans to tell his side of the story to Roger Goodell before a suspension that could disrupt the Saints’ 2023 season| @DillySanders

There has been a lot of talk surrounding New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara’s legal situation this offseason and how many games he will have to miss because of it due to an NFL suspension. It does not appear that Kamara intends to go down without a fight, though, as, per NOLA.com’s Jeff Duncan, he plans to meet with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and share his side of the story.

Duncan added a quote from Kamara from earlier this week, “I’ll talk to you all on Aug. 2 after I talk to (Goodell).” That would suggest that this planned meeting with Goodell will happen in the coming days.

This comes after Kamara agreed to plea no contest to a misdemeanor charge earlier in July for his role in the Las Vegas fight, avoiding any felony charges that many believed were on the way. Now, Kamara will head to Goodell to try and lessen whatever suspension is on the way.

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Marcus Maye’s Florida jury trial rescheduled again

Marcus Maye was set to appear in Florida court this week, but his jury trial has been rescheduled again — for the same date as a Saints-Chargers joint practice session:

New Orleans Saints safety Marcus Maye was set to appear in Florida court this week for his February 2021 DUI charge, but his jury trial has been rescheduled yet again. As first reported by ESPN’s Katherine Terrell, Broward County court records show that Maye’s next hearing will occur on Aug. 17 regarding a change of plea — originally, he pleaded not guilty.

That new court date is scheduled at the same time as a joint practice between the Saints and the Los Angeles Chargers (before their Aug. 20 preseason game), so Maye will miss some time at practice attending to his legal proceedings. The Saints and Chargers will practice together Aug. 17 and 18.

It’s taken a long time for this to play out. Drew Brees was still the Saints quarterback when Maye was first charged in Fort Lauderdale, and Maye had not yet signed with New Orleans. But a series of delays and rescheduled hearings has occurred in the case.

Will this impact Maye’s 2023 availability? The NFL has set a precedent for waiting until the legal process concludes to issue its own discipline, but Maye will likely face a three-game suspension once this has wrapped up. If he reaches a resolution on Aug. 17, the league may issue a suspension to start the regular season, though it’s possible they could wait longer and hand down discipline once the season has already started. Stay tuned.

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Broncos DL Eyioma Uwazurike suspended indefinitely for betting on NFL games

The Broncos will be without one of their defensive linemen for at least the 2023 season after he gambled on NFL games.

Denver Broncos defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike has been suspended indefinitely for betting on NFL games, the league announced Monday.

This story will be updated.

What the NFL personal conduct policy says about possible Alvin Kamara suspension

How long could Alvin Kamara be suspended? What the NFL personal conduct policy says about possible league discipline | @MaddyHudak_94

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New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara has plead no contest to a misdemeanor charge for his alleged involvement in a fight in Las Vegas in 2022, and is no longer facing felony charges. For a quick legal summary, a guilty plea is an admission that you committed the crime. In contrast, a plea of nolo contendere, or no contest, means you accept the conviction or punishments of a guilty plea without admitting guilt. An Alford Plea is one where you plead guilty but claim you are innocent; both result in a conviction, technically speaking.

Most defendants enter no contest pleas in an agreement with the judge overseeing the case as they then determine the sentencing or outcome. In Kamara’s case, he’s agreed to serve 30 hours of community service and to pay $105,000 in medical bills for the alleged victim. A key factor in no contest pleas is that they cannot be used as an admission of guilt in civil proceedings, which have also been settled.

The NFL’s new conduct policy has taken the approach to wait until criminal proceedings play out in court before handing down discipline, in this case likely a multi-game suspension. Importantly, the policy considers a criminal conviction equal to being subject to a “disposition of criminal proceedings” in assessing disciplinary actions, defined in their policy as follows:

“Includes an adjudication of guilt or admission to a criminal violation; a plea to a lesser included offense; a plea of nolo contendere or no contest; or the disposition of the proceeding through a diversionary program, deferred adjudication, disposition of supervision, conditional dismissal, or similar arrangements.”

The league takes repeat offenders into account in assessing periods of suspension, and Kamara importantly has no prior history of conduct detrimental to the league. Unlike Marshon Lattimore’s case involving alleged possession of a stolen gun, charges of which he plead down to a misdemeanor in 2021, Kamara’s allegations are of a violent nature; a suspension is to be expected.

Looking at previous cases, the most similar suspension was to a former Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman, Bryant McKinnie, in 2008 for four games after he was arrested on aggravated battery charges outside a nightclub. Violence of domestic nature, child abuse, and sexual assault cases typically incur higher punishments in the form of six or more game suspensions. The NFL is ultimately not a legal entity and legal precedent doesn’t hold bindings to their prior issuances of suspensions. It’s impossible to predict, but a suspension of four to six games would be in line with established precedent.

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NFL spokesman shares statement on Alvin Kamara situation

An NFL spokesman shared a statement on Alvin Kamara’s legal situation. The Saints should be bracing for a potential suspension:

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We’ve seen some significant movement in Alvin Kamara’s legal proceedings — the New Orleans Saints running back agreed to a plea deal in the Nevada criminal case stemming from his alleged involvement in last year’s beating at a Las Vegas nightclub while reaching an out-of-court settlement with the victim in a Louisiana civil case.

The end of the legal process opens the door for potential NFL discipline, and it sounds like that could come swiftly. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero shared a statement from the league’s vice president of communications Brian McCarthy, who said “We have been closely monitoring all developments in the matter which remains under review.”

If Kamara had been charged with a felony, as was initially the case, he would be facing a six-game suspension as per the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Because he instead agreed to plead no-contest to a lesser misdemeanor charge, he could be suspended for fewer games. The Saints will hit the road for four of their first six matchups, so they could use his help in hostile environments:

  • Week 1 vs. Tennessee Titans
  • Week 2 at Carolina Panthers
  • Week 3 at Green Bay Packers
  • Week 4 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  • Week 5 at New England Patriots
  • Week 6 at Houston Texans

Kamara is scheduled to join his teammates for training camp in just two weeks, so hopefully this can get resolved before then. The sooner the Saints know exactly how many games Kamara will be unavailable the more easily they can plan for life without him. They’ve already made significant investments at running back by signing veteran free agent Jamaal Williams and drafting third-round rookie Kendre Miller, but if Kamara is going to be out of action for extensive time they might need to make another move to maintain the depth chart. Stay tuned.

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Alvin Kamara reaches confidential settlement in civil suit, submits written apology

Representing the victim in a civil suit, attorney Tony Buzbee shared a written apology from Alvin Kamara and news of a settlement. Now we wait for an NFL suspension:

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Houston-based attorney Tony Buzbee shared an announcement on social media that he reached a confidential settlement in a Louisiana civil lawsuit against New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara, having represented the victim in a beating at a Las Vegas nightclub in Feb. 2022. As part of their agreement, Kamara submitted a written apology to the victim, Darnell Greene.

The details of this out-of-court settlement remain unclear, but that should wrap things up as far as the law is concerned. Kamara agreed to a plea deal in Nevada court on a misdemeanor charge, avoiding more serious felony charges but paying out more than $100,000 in medical bills. Now that the criminal and civil suits are concluded and the legal process has wrapped up, the NFL will likely take action in handing down a suspension.

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Alvin Kamara strikes plea deal on misdemeanor charge in Las Vegas court

Alvin Kamara struck a plea deal on a misdemeanor charge in Las Vegas court, will avoid felony charges but may still face suspension:

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As first reported by 8 News Las Vegas’ David Charns and confirmed by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, New Orleans Saints running back Kamara agreed to plea no contest on a misdemeanor charge stemming from his alleged involvement in a Feb. 2022 beating in Las Vegas. This means Kamara is no longer facing felony charges in Nevada, nor will he be required to miss time in training camp to attend his previously-scheduled court date.

Instead, Kamara will pay a $500 fine and foot the bill for more than $100,000 in medical bills to the victim, as well as fulfilling 30 hours of community service.

But this isn’t necessarily over. There is still a civil suit against Kamara filed in Louisiana, and now the NFL is likely to take action with affairs in criminal court concluded. The league has suspended players before despite a lack of convictions or charges being dropped and that precedent is still in play for Kamara.

So how much time could he miss during the season? That’s unclear. The NFL’s personal conduct policy says that violations involving “criminal assault or battery” with a felony charge would qualify for a six-game suspension, so that’s likely the higher end of any expected suspension. Three or four games feels more likely, and Kamara can appeal the decision to try and reduce it further, but we’ll have to wait and see how this plays out. At least this is one less distraction for the team to deal with during the offseason.

Update: Kamara agreed to an undisclosed settlement with the victim, Darnell Greene, per Greene’s attorney Tony Buzbee.

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NFL officially announces four-game suspension for Jaguars’ OT Cam Robinson

Jacksonville Jaguars OT Cam Robinson suspended four games by the NFL for violating the leagues PED policy

The NFL has officially announced a four-game suspension for Jacksonville Jaguars LT, [autotag]Cam Robinson[/autotag], for violating the league’s Performance Enhancing Drug policy.  The news officially broke that Robinson had failed a test on the day of the 2023 NFL Draft, but it took two months for the league to dish out the punishment.

Robinson just signed a three-year contract extension worth $54 million in March of 2022 and has been a core piece of their offensive line since being drafted out of Alabama in 2017.  With the looming suspension, the Jaguars used their first-round pick, No. 27 overall, to select OT Anton Harrison out of Oklahoma.

The first four games on the Jaguars’ schedule in 2023 are at Indianapolis, vs. Kansas City, vs. Houston and at Atlanta, so Robinson will miss two crucial divisional games. Losing Robinson for four games is unfortunate for the Jaguars as they are primed to compete for the AFC title this year, but four games is a win for Robinson as he is probably still guaranteed to get his starting job back when he returns.

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SB Nation suggests Saints as sleepers in Dalvin Cook trade talks

SB Nation suggests the New Orleans Saints could make sense as a sleeper team amid Dalvin Cook trade talks, even after their offseason investments at running back:

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How deep is too deep for the New Orleans Saints to go at running back? Despite having previously signed Jamaal Williams to a lucrative free agent contract and picked Kendre Miller early in the third round of the 2023 draft, at least one outlet is suggesting the Saints make a move for Dalvin Cook.

The Minnesota Vikings are determined to part ways with their four-time Pro Bowl running back, coming off the heels of his lowest rate of yards gained per carry (4.4, half a yard better than Alvin Kamara’s pace last year) with a salary cap hit north of $14.1 million. Unless the Vikings take on much of Cook’s salary, any team trading for him will take on base salary payments of $10.4 million in 2023, $11.9 million in 2024, and $13.9 million in 2025. That’s going to be challenging even for a creative front office like New Orleans.

One national analyst likes the Saints as a dark-horse team who can surprise the NFL world and overcome those hurdles. Here’s the reasoning from SB Nation’s James Dator:

The salary cap is a fake construct to the Saints. An annoying road block they just navigate around each year. Right now New Orleans already have Alvin Kamara, but with his status up in the air pending a legal trial, there is a major chance he could get suspended to start the year.

Not only is this a concern, but Kamara’s production has dropped off significantly in the last two years. If this team wants to try and contend in the NFC South (and all signs point to yes), then adding a weapon like Cook could really help the team in 2023.

Normally I wouldn’t give this any chance, but considering how the Saints manage the cap it’s a possibility.

Those are all valid points, but it’s still a lot of money to pay for another running back when the Saints have already invested heavily in the position. They won’t know if Kamara will be suspended or not until his legal process wraps up, and it’s not even going to take the next step until his next court date on July 31. Odds are the Saints won’t know how long he’ll be suspended for until they’ve played a couple of preseason games.

And even then, trading for Cook just to tide you over for maybe six to eight weeks while Kamara is unavailable can’t justify the cost to acquire him (not just in salary cap resources, but in the trade package going back to Minnesota). The Saints would be better served letting Williams and Miller get an extended audition in Kamara’s place, giving them an idea of what the offense may look like if they move on from him in 2024 when his own cap hit soars past $18.8 million.

On the other hand, Cook would be a lot of fun in New Orleans, and we’re always in favor of that. If the Saints can find a way to cook the books and get him from Minnesota at a discount, why not explore it?

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Report: Saints plan to ‘take it easy’ with rookie RB Kendre Miller coming off meniscus injury

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports the Saints plan to ‘take it easy’ with rookie RB Kendre Miller during offseason workouts, coming off a meniscus injury:

We’ll file this one under “Not worth worrying about, but still newsworthy.” The New Orleans Saints will gather for rookie minicamps this coming weekend but don’t expect to see much from running back Kendre Miller.

The team’s third-round draft pick is still recovering from a meniscus injury that kept him out of TCU’s College Football Playoff National Championship bid (though he said at the time his knee was at 50% of where it should be, while weighing his options, officially listed as questionable for the game), and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the Saints aren’t in a rush to get him on the field:

Saints GM Mickey Loomis said pre-draft that running back Alvin Kamara‘s potential suspension wouldn’t influence which players the Saints draft. But the flexibility third-round back Kendre Miller out of TCU provides the position isn’t lost on the team. New Orleans ranked Miller highly in the running back class, believes in his game and loves the promise, once he figures out the pass-catching and pass-blocking components. He’s already a vicious downhill runner, and though the Saints are eager to see him in action, they will likely take it easy with him in offseason workouts and leading up to training camp while he recovers from his meniscus injury. But New Orleans might need Miller sooner than expected.

Miller is on track to return for training camp, but there’s a chance he hits the field at the same time Kamara flies out to Las Vegas for his next court appearance. The rookie has already made his intentions of coming for the top spot very clear, and he’s poised to help his case by continuing to recover from his injury so he can join the team for practice at full health.

He’s an exciting prospect. Despite this injury, Miller brings fresh legs to a running backs room that badly needs it — he’s one of the youngest players in this draft class (he doesn’t turn 21 until June) and he only has 361 career carries behind him. For context, Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry led the NFL with 349 rushing attempts last season. Miller needs more reps in pass protection and receiving drills, but he’ll have every opportunity to succeed once his body is right.

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