BALTIMORE – The Ravens were fined $ 250,000 by the NFL for their recent COVID-19 outbreak, but avoided losing a draft pick, a league source confirmed.
This discipline is less severe than others that the league has imposed this season. The New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans were fined $ 350,000 each, and the Las Vegas Raiders and New Orleans Saints were fined $ 500,000 and a draft pick was withdrawn; the Raiders lost a sixth-round pick and the Saints a seventh-round pick.
The NFL fine adds to the discipline imposed by the Ravens, the source said. Baltimore suspended strength and conditioning coach Steve Saunders because he did not always wear a mask and contact locating device at the facility.
Last month, the Ravens dealt with one of the biggest outbreaks in professional sports. Baltimore had at least one positive player for ten days in a row and as a result, two of their games were rescheduled several times.
The Ravens placed a total of 23 players on the reserve list / COVID-19 from November 23 to December 2, including NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, who tested positive for the coronavirus in Thanksgiving. The NFL informed the team that “at least four unique strains” of COVID-19 were found inside its facilities during the outbreak.
This caused the Ravens game against the Steelers to be postponed three times and their game against the Cowboys to be postponed twice.
“From the first moment, we’ve taken the virus seriously,” Ravens president Dick Cass said in a statement earlier this month. “… Despite our best efforts, the protocol is as effective as our weakest link. With a dangerous virus like this, everyone has to follow the protocol to avoid infecting many of them. Now we know that not all Ravens they followed the protocol thoroughly “.
The Ravens have only had a couple of positive tests since the outbreak. Baltimore currently has no players on the reserve list / COVID-19.
NFL Network first reported the Ravens’ fine.