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 The league announced the penalty Monday for Griffin's hit on
Oakland tight end Mychal Rivera. The punishment came from Merton
Hanks, the NFL's vice president of football operations.
Griffin wrote in a text to The Associated Press that he was just
trying to do his job but hurt his team.
The suspension would cost Griffin $205,882.35 out of his $3.5
million base pay this season and keep him out of Sunday's game at
Indianapolis.
Griffin cannot take part in any football activities until Dec. 2,
and the Titans hold the AFC's sixth and final playoff berth at this
point.
"All I can say is I apologize to the Titans fans, my teammates, and
the organization," Griffin wrote. "I also hope Rivera is doing well
and I apologize to him and his family."
The safety was flagged for unnecessary roughness in the second
quarter of Sunday's 23-19 win over Oakland for a hit on Rivera.
It was Griffin's second violation this season and fourth since 2011.
Griffin went in low but hit Rivera as the tight end went to the
ground after attempting a catch.
Griffin said after the game that he apologized and even asked an
official what more he could do on the play only to be told to aim
low.
"I'm asking where do you aim low when somebody's going over the
middle and he's catching the ball and he's falling at the same time?
What do you do? My position and my job as a defensive player is to
keep him from catching the ball and I don't know what you're
supposed to do," Griffin said after the game.
Rivera, a rookie out of the University of Tennessee, had his helmet
knocked off in the collision and did not return to the game.
"It was pretty brutal," Rivera said. "The really brutal thing about
it was my helmet falling off and my head hitting the ground. It
wasn't really the hit. The hit was pretty hard to my head, but it
was more my helmet falling off and hitting the ground."
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Rivera said he had no symptoms when he woke up
Monday and has been cleared by doctors to play this week. He
also said Griffin texted an apology after the game and said the
hit was not malicious.
"I really respected that from him," Rivera said. "I hit him back
and told him I respected he was just doing his job and I said
we'd see each other again in the future."
Oakland coach Dennis Allen said the suspension was the league's
decision.
"That's not for me to say whether it's just or not just," Allen
said. "It's unfortunate that our guy got hit and was knocked out
of the game. I'll say that."
Titans coach Mike Munchak said the hit looked a lot worse
because Rivera was going low and his helmet came off. Munchak
said the intent to harm wasn't there because Griffin went in
with his shoulder.
"I think the helmet came off from him actually hitting the
ground of his own doing," Munchak said. "I think (Griffin) hit
him with his shoulder, for sure."
Griffin was fined $21,000 for hitting Jets receiver Stephen Hill
high while blocking after an interception Sept. 29. The NFL also
fined Griffin $21,000 last season for a helmet-to-helmet hit on
Minnesota receiver Michael Jenkins last season, and the safety
was fined $7,500 for a late hit in the head area with his helmet
in a game at Carolina in November 2011.
___
AP NFL website:
http://pro32.ap.org/
[Associated
Press]
AP Sports Writer Josh
Dubow in Alameda, Calif., contributed to this report.
Copyright 2013 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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