NFL takes action with Patriots’ Jabrill Peppers amid assault and drug charges
The NFL has taken another step in the situation with Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers, amid multiple charges stemming from a recent incident.
Jabrill Peppers will be away from the New England Patriots for a while.
Head coach Jerod Mayo confirmed Wednesday that Peppers has been placed on the commissioner’s exempt list, which means he may not participate in any team activities, including practicing or attending games.
The commissioner’s exempt list is a “special player status available to clubs only in unusual circumstances,” according to NFL rules. Only commissioner Roger Goodell can decide to place players on the list, and he has the authority to determine whether they stay on the list indefinitely or for a specific period of time.
MORE: Patriots’ Jabrill Peppers arrested on assault, drug charges
Peppers is facing charges of assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, strangulation, and possession of a Class B substance, according to Braintree police. A caller to the police said Peppers “hit her, choked her, took off her clothing and put her outside,” according to the police report.
“I just want to be clear that any act of domestic violence is unacceptable for us as a team,” Mayo told reporters Wednesday in Foxboro. “No matter if you’re a player, staff member, we’re wholeheartedly against any type of domestic violence. I know the organization’s position, which I fully support. With that being said, I do think that Jabrill has to go through the system, has to continue to go through due process. We’ll see how that works out.
“What I will say is that the league has placed him on the [commissioner’s exempt list]. That will give us time to really gather information as an organization going forward. At this time, he’s not in the building. We’ll talk about that at a later time. That’s the last thing I want to say about Jabrill and his situation at this time.”
However, Mayo did add: “As a father of three daughters, I definitely understand the seriousness of the allegations and hopefully they’re not true. But, we’ll see. Like I said earlier, we’ll go through that due process.”
It was all a long way of saying that the Pats will wait for the legal process to play out before making any further decisions on Peppers, who was voted a team captain by the players prior to the start of the season. Considering Mayo and the organization’s clear stance on domestic violence, if the allegations do prove true, the team would likely release Peppers.
On the field, Peppers is a big loss in terms of both his physical talent and his toughness and leadership qualities. The Pats have lost a lot of those intangibles during the season, both on offense with the loss of center David Andrews, and on defense with the loss of linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley.
But there’s no excusing the kind of off-field behavior that Peppers is alleged to have engaged in, and that’s why he’ll be on the commissioner’s exempt list for the foreseeable future. Going forward, the Patriots and new starting quarterback Drake Maye have to focus on getting back in the win column in a tough matchup against the Houston Texans.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.