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According to ESPN, the New England Patriots were banned from organized team activities for two days after the organization was found to have violated off-season rules.
An OTA was scheduled for the Patriots on Thursday, but the team announced on Wednesday that the session had been canceled. Rather than that being just head coach Bill Belichick’s call, it has since been reported that the NFL took away the two OTAs on Thursday along with another scheduled for next week.
The specific violation that, according to Pro Football Talk, caused the league to pull two OTAs from New England, centered on a 15-minute special teams meeting. The NFL Players Association believed that one of the early offseason meetings was in violation because it was made visible in the internal schedule. By including it in the formal schedule, it was assumed that this would fall into the “mandatory” category in the eyes of the NFLPA, rather than as optional.
The team was in the middle of the third phase of the offseason program, which allows for up to 10 OTAs. Per the CBA, contact or pads are allowed during this portion of the offseason program. This includes no blocking, tackling, etc. This latest report from Pro Football Talk notes that this violation had nothing to do with any activity on the practice field.
The Patriots are no strangers to being in the crosshairs of the NFL under Belichick. In the past, the franchise has notoriously been penalized for more serious violations such as Deflategate and Spygate. However, this situation does not escalate as much and is somewhat more common in the league. Last offseason, the Cowboys, Bears, Commanders, and Texans were penalized for offseason rule violations. Meanwhile, the Cowboys (again), 49ers and Jaguars were penalized in 2021.
The Patriots are expected to hold their three-day mandatory mini-camp beginning June 12.