Browns' Myles Garrett suspended for rest of season for helmet-swinging incident
Cleveland DE says he regrets 'losing cool' and hitting Pittsburgh QB in the head
Myles Garrett is done playing for the Cleveland Browns this season. The NFL isn't saying when the star defensive end will play again.
The violent outburst in the final seconds of Thursday's nationally televised game against the Steelers resulted in the longest suspension for a single on-field infraction in league history. Tennessee's Albert Haynesworth was suspended five games in 2006.
The league's No. 1 overall pick in 2017 was also fined an undisclosed amount. Garrett must meet with commissioner Roger Goodell before his reinstatement is considered.
Until then, the defensive end's career is on hold.
WATCH | Myles Garrett suspended indefinitely for using helmet 'as a weapon'
After wrestling Rudolph to the ground as the Browns were closing out a rare win over their rivals, Garrett ripped off the quarterback's helmet and clobbered him on top of the head, triggering a brawl that capped another physical game between the AFC North teams.
"I made a terrible mistake," Garrett said in a statement Friday. "I lost my cool and what I did was selfish and unacceptable. I know that we are all responsible for our actions and I can only prove my true character through my actions moving forward. I want to apologize to Mason Rudolph, my teammates, our entire organization, our fans and to the NFL. I know I have to be accountable for what happened, learn from my mistake and I fully intend to do so."
Rudolph, who suffered a concussion earlier this season, avoided serious injury and said after the game the attack was "cowardly and bush league." That sentiment was shared across the league and sports world.
Garrett used helmet as a 'weapon'
The NFL said Garrett "violated unnecessary roughness and unsportsmanlike conduct rules, as well as fighting and removing an opponent's helmet and using it as a weapon."
Steelers centre Maurkice Pouncey, who was trying to separate Garrett and Rudolph, was suspended three games without pay and also fined for punching and kicking Garrett. Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi was suspended for one game. He shoved Rudolph to the ground from behind during the melee.
The suspended players have three business days to appeal their penalties.
The Steelers and Browns were fined $250,000 US each.
Browns coach Freddie Kitchens met with Garrett at the team's training facility Friday and said the 23-year-old expressed more remorse.
"He understands that he let himself down, he let his teammates down and he let his organization down," Kitchens said. "We look at our team as a family, and in a family, sometimes family members make mistakes. You support them in every way that you can, even if it is an egregious mistake. We know who Myles is as a person. We know who Myles is and the character that Myles has, and that is under no circumstance what he wants to be portrayed as. We will support him."
Embarrassing ripple effect
There was a ripple effect to Garrett's act, causing embarrassment to the league and both teams.
"There is no place for that in football and that is not reflective of the core values we strive for as an organization," Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam said in a statement. "We sincerely apologize to Mason Rudolph and the Pittsburgh Steelers."
Rudolph's agent, Tim Younger, said he'll explore legal action against Garrett. Cleveland police say no police report or charges have been filed.
"There are many risks an NFL QB assumes with every snap taken on the field," Younger wrote on Twitter. "Being hit on your uncovered head by a helmet being swung by a 275 lb DE is not one of them."
The brawl overshadowed a big 21-7 win for a Cleveland franchise just a few years removed from a winless season. The Browns (4-6) have moved into the playoff race but will now be without their best defensive player.