JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The NFL has suspended Jacksonville Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette one game without pay for leaving the sideline, running across the field and throwing punches at Buffalo Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson.
NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan handed down the punishment Monday, saying “sportsmanship is the cornerstone of the game and the league will not tolerate game-related misconduct that conveys a lack of respect for the game itself and those involved in it.”
Runyan sent a letter to Fournette detailing his wrongdoing.
“Video of the incident shows that you were not a participant in the play and that you ran from your sideline to the opposite side of the field to insert yourself as an active participant in a fight,” Runyan wrote.
“Once you entered the fight area, you struck a member of the opposing team. Your actions adversely reflected on the NFL and have no place in the game.”
Fournette and Lawson were ejected in the third quarter of Buffalo’s 24-21 victory and continued jawing at each other as they exited the field and entered the tunnel to the locker rooms.
Fournette has three days to appeal the suspension.
The second-year pro will be eligible to return to the team’s active roster next Monday. Jacksonville, which has lost seven in a row, hosts Indianapolis on Sunday.
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