Sources: Brawl appeal rulings expected by Wed.
Stephen A. Smith agrees with the NFL’s indefinite suspension of Myles Garrett and expects him to still be suspended when next season starts. (2:17)
Jointly appointed officers Derrick Brooks and James Thrash are expected to hear and rule upon the appeals of the three players suspended for Thursday night’s Steelers–Browns melee no later than Wednesday morning and possibly as early as Tuesday, NFL sources told ESPN.
The appeals for the three suspended players — Myles Garrett, Maurkice Pouncey and Larry Ogunjobi — will be heard on Monday and Tuesday, according to sources.
Brooks and Thrash, who will divvy up the cases by Monday morning, will make a ruling in time to determine whether the Browns or Steelers will have any of those players available for Week 12, when Cleveland hosts Miami and Pittsburgh plays at Cincinnati.
The NFL suspended Garrett for the remainder of this season, including the playoffs, and announced he will have to meet with the commissioner’s office before being reinstated for 2020. Garrett ripped Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph‘s helmet off and clubbed him in the head with it in the final seconds of Cleveland’s victory Thursday night.
The NFL also suspended Ogunjobi one game for shoving Rudolph in the back and to the ground, shortly after Garrett struck the Steelers quarterback with the helmet. Pouncey, who jumped into Garrett, kicking and punching him after Rudolph had been struck, was suspended for three games.
Both Brooks and Thrash haven’t always automatically signed off on the NFL’s ruling. They have shown a willingness to be open- and fair-minded, reducing past suspensions if warranted.
• Thrash reduced then-Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict’s suspension from five games to three games in 2017.
• Brooks reduced Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan‘s suspension from two games to one game in 2017.
• Brooks reduced then-Raiders receiver Michael Crabtree’s suspension from two games to one game in 2017.
• Thrash reduced then-Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib’s suspension from two games to one game in 2017.
One source told ESPN that he would not be surprised if at least one of the three suspensions announced Friday were reduced or overturned. But a lot will depend on their arguments issued early this week.