Oakland Raiders linebacker Vontaze Burfict suspended for rest of season
Burfict will miss Raiders' London game on Sunday against the Chicago Bears at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, live on Sky Sports Main Event
Monday 30 September 2019 17:39, UK
Oakland Raiders linebacker Vontaze Burfict has been suspended without pay for the remainder of the NFL season after repeatedly violating unnecessary roughness rules.
Burfict was ejected from Sunday's 31-24 victory over the Indianapolis Colts following a helmet-to helmet collision with Jack Doyle in the second quarter.
The suspension is the longest punishment ever handed out for on-field offences in the NFL and Burfict will subsequently miss Sunday's London game against the Chicago Bears at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan wrote a letter to Burfict, stating: "There were no mitigating circumstances on this play. Your contact was unnecessary, flagrant and should have been avoided. For your actions, you were penalised and disqualified from the game.
"Following each of your previous rule violations, you were warned by me and each of the jointly-appointed appeal officers that future violations would result in escalated accountability measures. However, you have continued to flagrantly abuse rules designated to protect yourself and your opponents from unnecessary risk.
"Your extensive history of rules violations is factored into this decision regarding accountability measures."
The 29-year-old has three days to appeal the suspension.
Burfict amassed more than $4m in on-field conduct fines during a turbulent seven-year stretch with the Cincinnati Bengals from 2012-18.
He was suspended by the NFL to start both the 2016 and 2017 seasons for violation of player-safety policies, and again in 2018 for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
Burfict has recorded 18 tackles in four games with the Raiders since signing a one-year, $5m contract in March.
