The New England Patriots shocked the football world when they suspended two players this week, but now one of them has stated his intention to fight back against the discipline.
The New England Patriots moved both punter Jake Bailey and cornerback Jack Jones from the reserve/injured list to the suspended list. Jones has missed the team’s past three games, while Bailey hasn’t taken the field since Week Nine.
The situation got a bit interesting on Saturday when the agent of Bailey released a strong statement pushing back on the Patriots’ stated reasoning for suspending the punter and stating that he plans to file a grievance with the league.
“While Jake Bailey was on IR he never missed a single treatment, meeting or practice,” stated Doug Hendrickson, Bailey’s agent. “He was hoping to come off IR to play last weekend, but Jake was informed he was being suspended these last two games. This comes as a surprise given his full participation during injury reserve. We have filed a grievance to fight this unknown suspension.”
Mike Reiss of ESPN stated Bailey was suspended due to “differing viewpoints on if Bailey was ready to return to game action.”
It appears the 2020 All-Pro wanted to return to the field for the Patriots’ but the franchise had other ideas. According to Reiss, moving Bailey and Jones from the IR to the suspended list jeopardizes their ability to collect game checks from the final two contests of the season.
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NFL stories via Google! Follow Us
Jones, meanwhile, was suspended in part for missing rehab appointments. Among Jones’ notable plays this season was an interception of Aaron Rodgers that he returned for a touchdown against the Packers in Week 4.
If the Patriots lose on Sunday, they can still make the postseason but would need the Jaguars to beat the Titans, the Jets to win against the Dolphins, and the Browns to defeat the Steelers.
