Buffalo Bills receiver fined for breaking mask policy for unvaccinated players

A player with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills has been fined for breaking the league’s COVID-19 protocols for unvaccinated players, The Associated Press reported.

In a series of tweets Thursday, Bills wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie shared a copy of the league’s office sending him a letter informing him that he broke league protocol by not wearing a mask in his team’s facility. 

The letter also noted that for McKenzie, who is entering his fifth season in the league, this was his second time violating the league’s policy. 

“They got me! @NFL you win!” McKenzie said in a tweet. 

They got me! @NFL you win! pic.twitter.com/Ewt498wmsy

— Isaiah McKenzie (@_IsaiahMcKenzie) August 26, 2021

Under the league’s rules, a player will be fined $14,650 for their first offense of violating the policy. Players could be suspended or lose a week’s salary if repeated, according to the AP.  

Cole Beasley, McKenzie’s teammate and a prominent anti-vaccination figure, also shared that the NFL fined him for breaking their protocol, saying that he’s still doesn’t understand the point of wearing a mask since he’s testing negative for the virus. 

Don’t worry they got me too. But I was wearing a mask when I was in close contact with fully vaxxed trainer who tested positive and still got sent home. So what’s the point of the mask anyways? Meanwhile I’m here still testing negative and can’t come back. Make it make sense. https://t.co/VGzoy0ljb4

— Cole Beasley (@Bease11) August 26, 2021

“Don’t worry they got me too. But I was wearing a mask when I was in close contact with fully vaxxed trainer who tested positive and still got sent home,”  Beasley wrote to Twitter. “So what’s the point of the mask anyways? Meanwhile I’m here still testing negative and can’t come back. Make it make sense.”

This comes amid the current wave of COVID-19 infection sweeping across the country as the delta variant hits the unvaccinated hard. 

The NFL commissioner’s office issued a memo in July to all 32 clubs warning them about forfeiting games this season if they are unable to play due to outbreaks among players not vaccinated against the coronavirus. 

Tennessee Titans placed quarterback Ryan Tannehill on their COVID-19 reserve list Thursday, according to ESPN reporter Adam Schefter.