There are some out there who don’t think the apology Jameis Winston offered up Thursday after his three-game suspension became official was contrite. Instead, said apology seemed to ring hollow.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ star was banned for the first three games of the 2018 season stemming from a 2016 incident in Arizona in which he allegedly assaulted a female Uber driver. Needless to say, the NFL itself received push back for giving him such a short suspension.
This latest piece of information isn’t going to do Winston or the league any favors. According to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, the quarterback’s apology was part of a settlement with the league resulting in the shorter suspension.
#Bucs QB Jameis Winston's apology was part of the negotiated settlement on his 3-game suspension, sources say. He does not admit guilt to the conduct the NFL says violated the policy. But he acknowledges he was drinking that night and doesn't remember everything. @TomPelissero pic.twitter.com/Z7lRtZgmtC
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 28, 2018
We won’t go into a huge rant about this. That would be pointless. It’s rather obvious what happened behind the scenes. The NFL seemingly told Winston to issue a public apology as a way to avoid a longer suspension.
Needless to say, said apology is now more worthless than it was before. Well done, Jameis and the NFL.