The Washington Commanders were absolutely blasted by the Detroit Lions on Sunday. For defensive tackle Daron Payne, the frustration got the better of him as he punched opposing wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. Now, the NFL has taken action towards that unfortunate event.
Per the official statement, the NFL said, “Washington Commanders defensive lineman Daron Payne has been suspended without pay for one game for an act of unsportsmanlike conduct during Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions.”
Payne’s action violated Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1 and Rule 12, Section 2, Article 14(d). These make allusion to throwing punches, or striking, swinging or clubbing the head or neck of opponents.
Payne’s teammate blames St. Brown for the incident
Javon Kinlaw, who was also flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct during the game, said that the Lions player instigated the whole thing. Per Nolan Bianchi of Detroit News, Kinlaw said, “Daron [Payne] only retaliated because the refs literally saw the first punch.” When asked if he saw St. Brown hitting Daron Payne, Kinlaw was firm, “Yeah, for sure and they [refs] did too. That s— was some b——- 100%.“
There are no camera angles or footage that actually show Amon-Ra St. Brown punching Payne. Hence, it’s just taking Kinlaw’s word as true and the NFL won’t suspend or fine someone for hearsay.
Commanders are getting really frustrated
Besides throwing punches or having ill-mouthed words during interviews, this team looks very frustrated. Between injuries and just underwhelming results in comparison to last year, the Commanders are at the brink of explosion.
They have lost five games in a row. Instead of getting healthier, they are getting more and more injured and the games are just not going as planned. Their defense is really bad, allowing the fourth most points in the NFL and third most yards against. It’s been a tough season for a team with high expectations and players are starting to lose faith.