Raiders Punished for Coronavirus Violations

I was going to post a Disaster Grade for the Raiders being punished for Coronavirus violations, but I thought this would be better in long form, as there is some opinion involved.

If you missed the news, the Raiders have been stripped of a sixth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and fined $500,000 for violating Coronavirus violations, specifically in relation to Trent Brown’s positive test. Additionally, Jon Gruden has been fined $150,000.

The Raiders, apparently, have been “repeat offenders” for this, with a news outlet citing that Gruden hasn’t maintained the best mask etiquette on the sideline.

I’m sure other news outlets and blue checkmarks are rejoicing. The Raiders haven’t exactly taken the so-called pandemic very seriously. When Brown tested positive, and the rest of the offensive linemen were suddenly in danger of missing an upcoming battle against the Buccaneers, the Raiders, through their actions, made it clear that no one but Brown was going to miss that game.

And you know what? They were right to act this way.

If Brown were infected with the flu, there wouldn’t be a second thought about the Raiders playing all of their linemen. And yet, the flu is more dangerous for NFL players than Coronavirus happens to be. The Coronavirus is much more serious for older people, obviously, but it doesn’t affect young people very much More than 80 percent of individuals don’t even know they’ve been infected, and there’s a 99.98-percent recovery rate for those whose age matches that of NFL players. We’ve also improved our response to those who have more serious symptoms. Now, overweight individuals in their 70s can go into the hospital and come out perfectly splendid two days later.

The NFL needs to curb its response to players who test positive. Those who show no symptoms should be allowed to play that very same week. The science and data say that’s OK. It’s become increasingly obvious that the media and the blue checkmarks on Twitter don’t pay attention to science and data, unfortunately.

With that in mind, the Raiders should not have been punished whatsoever for how they’ve handled the Brown situation. They shouldn’t be fined anything, and they shouldn’t be stripped of any draft choices.

In fact, it’s embarrassing that the NFL is even doing this. It feels like a parent scolding a child in public. Except, this child did nothing wrong.




There were no repercussions from what the Raiders did, so why are they being subjected to heavy fines and lost draft picks? It makes no sense, except for the fact that Roger Goodell, like some of the overbearing governors in the United States, just wants to exert control over his subjects by stepping on their neck.

The Raiders should not pay these fines or lose their draft pick. Owner Mark Davis should have his lawyers challenge these penalties, and I’m sure he would win in court. Meanwhile, the other 31 NFL teams should all agree to have the Raiders make a draft selection in the sixth round. Collectively, the other teams can stand up to Goodell’s authority and end his stranglehold.

If I were to give the Raiders a Disaster Grade, it would be a 1/10. Losing a sixth-round choice isn’t a huge deal. However, this could ultimately be a 0/10 if the other 31 NFL teams do the right thing and fight to end Goodell’s tyranny.








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