During the lockout, NFL coaches, front office executives and other team officials were strictly prohibited from contacting players. Now three teams are being punished by the league for violating that prohibition.
PFT’s Mike Florio is reporting that the league has handed down six-figure fines to three different teams for contact with players during the lockout. Two of those teams are the Titans and Buccaneers.
That the Titans and Bucs were fined isn’t a surprise. We’ve previously noted that Titans receiver Kenny Britt said in August that he and receivers coach Dave Ragone were in contact all summer long. And we’ve also noted that Bucs coach Raheem Morris has admitted he called players during the lockout.
Everyone NFL team and coach knew the rules during the lockout, so there’s no reason teams that violated the league shouldn’t be fined. And now the Titans and Bucs have been.
UPDATE: The Titans claim they have not been fined. We’ve contacted the league for further information.
SECOND UPDATE: The league says that the Titans weren’t fined. But the league won’t say who was fined. And we stand fully and completely by the report that three teams were fined.