Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans’ one-game suspension without pay has been upheld by Appeals Officer James Thrash, the National Football League announced Wednesday.
Evans will miss Sunday’s Buccaneers home opener against the Green Bay Packers.
The Buccaneers star receiver was suspended Monday for his role in Sunday’s altercation with New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore. He appealed the suspension and the hearing took place on Tuesday.
This wasn’t Evans’ first suspension for a fight with Lattimore. In 2017, Evans was suspended for one game for running into the field and shoving Lattimore in the back.
In a letter to Evans informing him of his suspension on Monday, NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan wrote, “After a game was over, you were walking to your sidelines. When you noticed your teammates engaged in a showdown with the Saints players, you ran to that area on the field and violently threw your body into and punched an unsuspecting opponent who was part of that showdown. You knocked your opponent to the ground and a scrum ensued involving players from both teams. Your aggressive driving could have caused serious injury to your opponent and clearly does not reflect the high standards of sportsmanship expected of a professional. »
On Sunday, Evans said he believed Lattimore punched running back Leonard Fournette in the face and pushed quarterback Tom Brady. He said he didn’t mind being suspended because he felt like 2017 was a more flagrant violation of the rules and he wasn’t kicked out at the time. But the NFL takes recidivism into account.
In 2020, Lattimore was fined $10,500 for unnecessary roughness for shoving Evans in the back, prompting Evans to rip off his helmet.
