Oakland Raiders linebacker Vontaze Burfict is currently suspended for the rest of the 2019 season after he committed a helmet-to-helmet hit on Indianapolis Colts tight end Jack Doyle last Sunday. The hit caused outrage with NFL fans and former players, leading to the swift decision.
But Burfict is appealing the suspension and we now know when he will get to plead his case. According to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, the NFL has scheduled Burfict’s appeal for Tuesday. Until then, the suspension is still in effect and Burfict will miss Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears being played in London.
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Alper says the appeal will be heard by former NFL linebacker Derrick Brooks. Brooks, along with former NFL wide receiver James Thrash, are the two appeals officers appointed by the NFL and the NFL Players Association. Brooks was the appeal officer who heard Burfict’s case when he was suspended for three games back in 2015 for his hit on Antonio Brown. Brooks upheld that suspension, so it will be interesting to see what he does this time around.
When Burfict hit Doyle, he was ejected from the game immediately. He was suspended on Monday and he received a letter from the league.
“There were no mitigating circumstances on this play,” NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan wrote to Burfict. “Your contact was unnecessary, flagrant, and should have been avoided. For your actions, you were penalized and disqualified from the game.”
But will Burfict be suspended for the full 12 games? According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Burfict will miss some games, but he will return at some point this year.
“Regardless, it’s unlikely that the full 12-game suspension will be upheld on appeal, and it’s highly unlikely that the league expects it to be,” Florio wrote in a previous article. “With the league now concerned that bruising hits once celebrated via NFL Films VHS tapes will prompt parents to vow to never let their kids play football, the goal continues to be to get those hits out of the game — and to eradicate from the game players with a habit of delivering such blows.”
Burfict, 29, has been in the NFL since 2012 as he was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent. He had a breakout season in 2013, recording 177 tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks and one interception. He was cut by the Bengals on March 18 and he signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Raiders the following day.
