Patriots penalized by NFL for committing violation of offseason rules

Oct 10, 2021; Houston, Texas, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick reacts during the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The New England Patriots have been penalized by the NFL for committing a violation of offseason rules.

The Patriots on Wednesday canceled the practice they were scheduled to have for Thursday. A day later we found out why.

The team was docked two voluntary organized team activites (OTAs). ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported the news on Thursday but did not offer information on the nature of the team’s violations.

Filed to ESPN: The Patriots are losing two days of voluntary organized team activities due to a violation of offseason rules, per league sources.

That explains the team's announcement about Thursday's practice being called off.

Another OTA next week has also been taken away.

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) May 25, 2023

In addition to losing Thursday’s scheduled workout, the Patriots will lose one of their workouts next week. They were scheduled to practice on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday next week.

Though the nature of the violation has not yet been reported, MassLive.com pointed out that many teams have been stripped of practices in the past because they have had contact during practices that should be non-contact.

The Patriots were originally scheduled to have 10 days of OTAs and three days of minicamp for a total of 13 days of practice this spring. Now they will end up with eight days of OTAs and three days of minicamp for a total of 11 days of practice.

In addition to the Patriots, the Seahawks, Ravens, Jaguars, Cowboys, 49ers, Commanders and Bears have all been disciplined for OTA violations at various times over the last decade.

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