Buffalo Bills safety and special teams captain Sam Franklin Jr. successfully appealed his one-game suspension Friday, with the NFL reducing the punishment to a $14,926 fine following an alleged spitting incident against the Las Vegas Raiders.
The decision allows Franklin to remain available for Buffalo when the Bills return from their bye week.
The NFL initially announced Wednesday that Franklin would be suspended without pay for allegedly spitting at an opponent during a fourth-quarter extra-point attempt in Buffalo’s 33-30 victory over Las Vegas.
Franklin denied the accusation and promptly appealed, maintaining through social media that he would defend himself on the field but would never spit at another player.
Unlike teammate C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Franklin was neither penalized nor ejected during the game. Publicly available replays also failed to clearly establish whether he spit at an opponent.
Gardner-Johnson was ejected late in the first half after an official witnessed him spitting toward Raiders tight end Brock Bowers. His separate one-game suspension was upheld following an appeal, meaning he will miss Buffalo’s next matchup.
Franklin, now in his seventh NFL season and second with Buffalo, has recorded six special teams tackles this year. Three came against Las Vegas, matching his highest single-game total since joining the Bills.
Buffalo returns to action November 1 against the Baltimore Ravens, with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.
