Buffalo Bills player Cole Beasley has been hit with $100K in fines for violating NFL coronavirus protocols: Report



Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley has reportedly racked up about $100,000 in fines for violating rules pertaining to his unvaccinated status.

Beasley has been very vocal about his opposition to the NFL's vaccination protocol and has remained unvaccinated and defiant. His stance has made him a hero to those opposing vaccine mandates, but others have excoriated him for his position.

Sources told ESPN that Beasley has numerous violations that have resulted in fines adding up to $100,000.

One of those was a $14,600 fine after NFL officials caught Beasley without a mask at the Bills' training facility in August.

Beasley reportedly tested positive for the coronavirus on Dec. 21 and was forced to forgo playing football for ten days by the NFL's policies. He missed a pivotal Bills game against the New England Patriots on Sunday that determined who would seize control of the AFC East division ahead of the playoffs.

Beasley remained defiant and criticized the rules that kept him from playing.

"Just to be clear COVID is not keeping me out of this game. The rules are," he posted on his Instagram account. "Vaxxed players are playing with Covid every week now because they don't test. One of my vaxxed teammates is in the hospital missing games. I'm sure he didn't get this same energy. Thank you for those who support. Everyone else, if you don't get what's happening then there is nothing anybody can do for you."

He later added another update about his health on Friday.

"Just checking in everybody. I’m still partying! Be back soon. Hate it or love it. Go Bills!" he wrote on Instagram.

Despite the absence of the talented wide receiver, the Bills went on to defeat the Patriots 33 to 21.

Here's more about Beasley's stand against the NFL:

Unvaccinated Cole Beasley blames ‘rules’, is forced out of key Bills game with COVID | New York Postwww.youtube.com

Bills' Cole Beasley, unvaccinated, forced to quarantine after testing negative for COVID —  because he came in contact with fully vaccinated trainer who had the virus



Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley, an outspoken opponent of the NFL's aggressive pro-vaccine rules, has entered the league's COVID protocol after coming in close contact with a team trainer who tested positive for the virus.

Beasley has since tested negative for the virus. The trainer who tested positive was fully vaccinated.

What are the details?

The news, which broke Tuesday, ignited a flurry of criticism for Beasley who this summer made headlines for his forceful opposition to the league's stringent COVID-19 rules which teeter near the edge of being a full-blown vaccine mandate.

"Actions have consequences," Deadspin writer Donovan Dooley wrote. "Beasley made his bed now he has to lay in it for five days." He referred to the star wideout as "Buffalo's anti-vax idiot."

But the development, far from proving Beasley's imprudence, may serve to highlight just how nonsensical are the league's COVID-19 protocols.

Beasley, along with three other teammates — including fellow wide receiver Gabriel Davis and defensive tackles Star Lotoulilei and Vernon Butler — were sent home Tuesday due to their close-contact designations.

All four players tested negative for the virus Tuesday but nevertheless were forced to enter the five-day re-entry process as mandated by the NFL. League protocols require unvaccinated players who come in contact with an infected person to quarantine for five days with daily testing.

More details: The Bills' trainer who tested positive was fully vaccinated. Beasley was in close contact with him ye… https://t.co/0DrO4ZIHLY
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) 1629816002.0

Two other teammates, linebackers Matt Milano and A.J. Klein, were also reportedly sent home Tuesday out of precaution. But after an investigation, their designations as close contacts were reversed.

Bills General Manager Brandon Beane said, "This is our new normal. It's not the normal we like. But it's the world we're in."

"We're not exempt from any of this, as we've said many times. We're going to try to keep our building as safe as we can. Everyone understands the protocols and the rules," he added.

Why does it matter?

The story has gained significant traction due to Beasley's public opposition to the league's vaccine push.

In Beasley's case, he's catching flack because he's unvaccinated. But it's ironic that his forced quarantine is not the result of his infection; rather, it is the result of a vaccinated individual's infection — though it should be noted that Beasley could soon test positive for the virus, depending on the incubation period.

In essence, the NFL's new guidelines divide players into two groups. But instead of the two groups being COVID-positive and COVID-negative like one might expect, the groups are vaccinated and unvaccinated.

At times, it's unclear whether the rules are there to protect the health of players and staff or whether they are intended as a mechanism to punish the unvaccinated.