The NFL has fined both the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints $500,000 after a chaotic joint practice on Tuesday descended into a major brawl and a series of additional skirmishes.
The punishment comes as the league takes a tougher stance on fighting during preseason joint practices, having sent a memo to every team before training camp outlining its expectations.
Teams had been warned of their duty to “prevent unsportsmanlike behavior at joint practices to reduce the potential for injury,” but tempers still flared when the Cowboys and Saints met earlier this week.
Cowboys linebacker Donovan Ezeiruaku was thrown out of the session after throwing a punch, while Saints receiver Brock Rechsteiner, the son of WWE icon Scott Steiner, was caught on video suplexing Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson in one of the day’s most dramatic moments.
Other footage from the practice showed helmets being pulled off and hurled, while witnesses said they counted at least six separate fights during the heated session.
The league’s response marks the first major example of its intensified effort to rein in player conduct during joint practices, with both franchises now facing significant financial penalties.
Cowboys and Saints players clashed repeatedly during Tuesday’s joint practice
Players exchanged punches during the session, prompting the NFL to fine both teams
Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer revealed in the aftermath that he and Saints head coach Kellen Moore contemplating cutting the practice short. He also shared that the NFL had requested video footage to review, as he admitted ‘nobody wants this’ as he spoke to the media.
‘We kind of had agreed that if a couple of other things happened, we would cancel it, but they worked through it,’ Schottenheimer said.
‘Again, they settled into it, but again, there’s a discipline element to playing this football game, and unfortunately we didn’t handle that very well today.’
Saints coach Moore admitted it was ‘not the ideal flow of joint practice’ but insisted his team ‘got the work that we needed.
‘Obviously, you guys saw all the chippiness of it,’ Moore added.
The memo sent to all NFL chief executives, presidents, general managers and head coaches on July 14, entitled, ‘Conduct at Training Camps’, laid out the ‘best practices regarding conduct at joint practices and warned ‘that coaches and players are held to the highest standards of professionalism and sportsmanship.’
Among the memo was a bullet point reading: ‘Not promoting an atmosphere for fighting or escalation of incidents; instances of player fighting will result in individual fines, club fines, and/or loss of practice.’
It later continued: ‘All clubs engaging in joint practices should notify players and staff that fighting and unprofessional conduct will not be tolerated, and they will be subject to club discipline if they engage in such activities.
Teams were warned about conduct of their players in a memo before training camp started
Head coaches Brian Schottenheimer and Kellen Moore continued cutting practice short
‘The League office will hold clubs and/or individuals accountable if players and/or staff engage in unsportsmanlike behaviors that result in injury (or have the potential to result in injury) to members of the opposing team.
‘Accountability measures may include but are not limited to fines, suspensions, draft choice forfeiture, change in draft position or other competitive consequences. Head coaches may be held accountable for violations of these rules, as they are ultimately responsible for establishing and managing the pace and intensity of all practices.’
One of the players involved in the practice, Saints linebacker Pete Werner, said: ‘You don’t want punches thrown or anything like that. But you want your guys protecing each other.
‘You can also say that for the other team. There’s a part of it that’s good. Other part where it’s, ‘Let’s be smart here. Let’s get this moving.”
After their heated joint practice, the two teams are due to meet in preseason on August 28. Before then, Dallas will play the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday while the Saints are traveling to Los Angeles to face the Rams.
