No talk of individual punishment for Tennessee players

NASHVILLE, TENN. » The NFL and the NFL Players Association found instances when the Tennessee Titans failed to wear masks at all times and were “insufficiently clear” to players about not meeting or working out once the facility closed in a review given to the team Monday, a person familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press.

Those issues will be taken into consideration for any potential discipline of the Titans.

But the person familiar with the review says there was no discussion of any discipline for an individual including general manager Jon Robinson, coach Mike

Vrabel or any players, and there was no discussion of punishment, including forfeitures or draft picks.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the NFL, the NFL Players Association nor the Titans have commented on the review.

The Titans had no comment Monday when asked if the team had received the review’s findings.

The NFL and NFL Players Association have revised protocols based on what officials saw during the review of the Titans, and there are also new procedures for teams dealing with an outbreak or exposed to an outbreak to follow try to mitigate COVID-19 among the league’s teams.

“This is not about discipline,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said last week when asked about potential punishment for the Titans. “This is about making sure we’re keeping our personnel safe. And that’s been our entire focus.”

The NFL and its players association sent officials, including infectious disease experts, to Nashville to review how Tennessee had been following protocols during the coronavirus pandemic. The Titans’ facility was shut down Sept. 29 after eight positive tests.

The outbreak grew to as many as 24 and forced the NFL to reschedule Tennessee games with Pittsburgh from Oct. 4 to Oct. 25 and also a game with Buffalo from Oct. 11 to Oct. 13.