With five coaches fined $100,000 and their teams fined $250,000 for failure to wear masks in Week Two, the NFL hopes the message has been received.
Soon, we’ll find out whether that’s the case.
Week Three began with Dolphins coach Brian Flores and Jaguars coach Doug Marrone complying with the mask requirement. The balance of the Week Three games begin to unfold at 1:00 p.m. ET, with two of the five coaches who were punished last week (Kyle Shanahan of the 49ers and Jon Gruden of the Raiders) on the sideline.
As a league source explained it to PFT, the powers-that-be hope there will be 100 pecent compliance, and that the topic will not spark yet another “national discussion.”
The league seems to be intent on punishing only the most egregrious violators; specifically, the coaches who rarely if ever cover their faces. But the rule -- which requires that face covering be worn over the mouth and nose “at all time” -- definitely isn’t being honored in all situations. For now, the question is whether the $1.75 million in fines will put a stop to the breaches that the league regards to be blatant.