C.J. Gardner-Johnson Suspended One Game for Spitting Incident
NFL punishes Bills safety for spitting at Raiders tight end Brock Bowers.
Buffalo Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson has been suspended for one game without pay by the NFL following an incident where he spat at Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers. The league announced the suspension on Monday.
The official NFL release stated that Gardner-Johnson violated Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1, which addresses "any act which is contrary to the generally understood principles of sportsmanship." The incident occurred during Sunday's game between the Bills and the Raiders.
Because the Bills are on a bye next week, Gardner-Johnson will miss the team's November 1 game against the Baltimore Ravens.
This one-game suspension aligns with previous NFL disciplinary actions for similar conduct. Last year, Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter was ejected from a game for spitting at Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. The NFL determined that Carter had already served his one-game suspension within that same game.
Gardner-Johnson issued an apology on his Instagram story on Sunday evening. Separately, San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk has previously alleged that Gardner-Johnson spat on him during a game last year.