Thursday’s quartet of suspensions included three guys who were suspended for four games each, and one player who was suspended for only one game.
Packers defensive end Datone Jones received a one-game suspension under the substance-abuse policy. But no one will talk about the specific violation that triggered the one-game suspension.
The formula for discipline under the substance-abuse policy doesn’t include a one-game suspension. It’s possible Jones initially faced a longer suspension than one game, and that the suspension was reduced to one game via negotiations between the NFL and NFL Players Association.
It’s also possible that the one-game suspension was imposed upon Jones for a violation of the law relating to substances other than alcohol. For example, an arrest for marijuana possession typically results in a one-game suspension, if the case is resolved with the player taking any type of responsibility for the infraction.
As to Jones, Green Bay’s first-round pick in 2013, no reports have emerged of any brushes with the law. Which would be unusual given the current obsession with NFL news.
But it wouldn’t be unprecedented. Two years ago, Rams running back Isaiah Pead received a one-game suspension. There were no reports of any brushes with the law, but it turned out that he’d been arrested for marijuana possession the prior year.