Washington Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne has been suspended by the NFL.
The NFL announced on Monday that Payne has been suspended one game for his actions in Washington’s Week 10 game against the Detroit Lions at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. Payne was ejected from the contest, a 44-22 blowout in favor of the Lions, after he punched star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in the face. You can see the video here.
The NFL said in a statement that Payne’s actions violated league rules which explicitly prohibit “striking, swinging at, or clubbing the head or neck of an opponent with the wrist(s), arm(s), elbow(s), or hand(s).”
The punch that Payne threw at St. Brown appeared to come out of nowhere, thought the two players may have been jawing at one another. Payne punched St. Brown following a Lions touchdown in the second quarter.
There was some speculation that Payne may have been angry over the way St. Brown celebrated a touchdown earlier in the game.
Payne, a former first-round pick out of Alabama, is in his eighth season with Washington. He has played in all 17 games in each of the last four years. Payne has 1 sack and 30 total tackles in 9 games this season.
A few years back, Payne was involved in an altercation on the sideline in which a teammate threw a punch at him.
