1:45 PM
According to league and union sources, Buffalo Bills receiver Cole Beasley has been fined multiple times for violating the COVID-19 protocol.
In August, the Bills were fined over $13,000 for having league officials in the facility to review their protocols. One of the league officials observed Beasley not complying with the protocols for unvaccinated players.
Sources say that the fine has been doubled on more than one occasion. One source thought the fines had reached $100,000, another thought they were just short of that amount.
It won't cost him money if he doesn't play in Sunday's game against the New England Patriots. Unvaccinated players are entitled to their full pay if they miss a game due to chronic bronchitis. The base salary for Beasley is $4.7 million, so he will still get his game check. Several team executives believe that the loophole that allows an unvaccinated player to be paid if he misses a game should be changed for 2022. This is the first time that he has been on the list.
The official declined to comment.
He has taken to social media twice this week to state his beliefs. "Just to be clear, COVID is not keeping me out of this game." He wrote in a Tuesday post that the rules are. Vaxed players are playing with Covid every week. One of my teammates is in the hospital. I'm pretty sure he didn't have the same energy. Thank you for your support. If you don't get what's happening, there's nothing anyone can do for you.
Jon Feliciano, who remains on the COVID-19 list after being added just before last week's game against the Panthers, posted on his verified account that he ended up in the ER on Sunday. He confirmed in a separate post that he's the teammate in the hospital.
On the eve of the game, he posted a photo of himself with a smile that was missing a tooth, and wrote, "Just checking in everybody." I'm still partying. Be back soon. Either love it or hate it. Go Bills!
On Tuesday, he was placed on the list after testing positive. Gabriel Davis, who is unvaccinated, will not play next week's game against the Atlanta Falcons after testing positive for a drug.
The COVID-19 vaccine and the NFL and NFLPA's protocols have been the subject of social media musings by Beasley. He doesn't have a problem with people beingvaccinated, but he doesn't like the fact that they can't choose.
"I'm pro-choice and not anti- or pro-vax," he said in July. The issue at hand is that players are not given enough information in order for them to make an informed decision.
The report was contributed to by an athlete.
